The Genoese Palace ( tr, Ceneviz Sarayı; it, Palazzo del Comune, lit=Palace of the Commune), alternatively known as the Palace of the Podestà ( tr, Podesta Sarayı, links=no), is a medieval palace in

Galata Galata is the former name of the Karaköy neighbourhood in Istanbul, which is located at the northern shore of the Golden Horn. The district is connected to the historic Fatih district by several bridges that cross the Golden Horn, most notabl ...

(the modern Karaköy quarter in the

Beyoğlu Beyoğlu (, ota, بك‌اوغلی, script=Arab) is a district on the European side of İstanbul, Turkey, separated from the old city (historic peninsula of Constantinople) by the Golden Horn. It was known as the region of Pera (Πέρα, meani ...

district of

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

), which was a

colony In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the ''metropole, metropolit ...

of the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the Lat ...

between 1273 and

1453 Year 1453 ( MCDLIII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar, the 1453rd year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 453rd year of the 2nd millennium, the 53rd year of the 15th century, and the 4 ...

It was built in 1314 (damaged by fire in 1315 and repaired in 1316) by Montano de Marinis, the

Podestà Podestà (, English: Potestate, Podesta) was the name given to the holder of the highest civil office in the government of the cities of Central and Northern Italy during the Late Middle Ages. Sometimes, it meant the chief magistrate of a city ...

. In terms of design it was modeled after the 13th-century wing of the

Palazzo San Giorgio The Palazzo San Giorgio or Palace of St. George (also known as the Palazzo delle Compere di San Giorgio) is a palace in Genoa, Italy. It is situated in the Piazza Caricamento. The palace was built in 1260 by Guglielmo Boccanegra, uncle of Simone ...

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. The building's appearance remained largely unchanged until 1880, when its front (southern) facade on

Bankalar Caddesi Bankalar Caddesi (''Banks Street''), also known as Voyvoda Caddesi (''Voivode Street''), in the historic Galata quarter (present-day Karaköy) of the district of Beyoğlu (Pera) in Istanbul, Turkey, was the financial centre of the late Ottoman E ...

(facing the Golden Horn), together with about two-thirds of the building, was demolished for constructing the street's

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

way line. The front facade was later reconstructed in the 1880s with a different style and became a 5-floor office building named ''Bereket Han'', while its rear (northern) facade on Kart Çınar Sokak (and the remaining one-third of the palace building) has retained the materials and design of the original structure, but needs restoration. It is a short walk to the left (west) of the Camondo Steps, along what was once the ''Rue Camondo'' and is now ''Kart Çınar Sokak''. In 2021 the Genoese

coat-of-arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its w ...

on its surviving rear facade on Kart Çınar Sokak was stolen. In 2022 the building was put up for sale after years of neglect.

References

External links

Comparison of the ruins of the Genoese Palace and the 13th-century wing of the Palazzo San Giorgio in Genoa, ItalyThe rear (left) and front (right) facades of the Genoese Palace today
{{coord missing, Turkey Buildings and structures in Beyoğlu Palaces in Turkey Republic of Genoa Buildings and structures completed in 1314