Kibrisli Yali

 

The long, low Kibrisli Yali, built in 1775, was named for Kibrisli Mehmet Emin Pasha, the Cypriot grand vizier of Sultan Mahmut II who bought it in 1840. The yali has the typical cruciform plan but the main fountain usually located in the center of the grand hall of the selamlik has been relegated to the "winter garden," one of the corner rooms that is glazed on two sides. The fountain rises from a pebble-mosaic floor –a feature inherited from Byzantines.

Seven generations of the Kibrisli family have lived in the yali, and today it is still the family’s summer home. Selim Dirvana, the senior member of the family, still remember the revolving door that once divided the gardens of the selamlik and the haremlik, permitting male members of the household to pass in and out without allowing others a glimpse of the women’s side, which constituted the family quarters.

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