The Sultan’s Seraglio: Intimate Portrait of Life at the Ottoman Court

From 1604 to 1607, Ottaviano Bon was the Venetian representative to Istanbul where he recorded every aspect of life at the Topkapi Palace. The result was published under the title, The Sultan’s Seraglio , and it provides an account of the period of Ahmet I. It covers such topics as: life in the harem; the menu at official state banquets; the buying of slaves in the weekly slave market; and the circumcision ceremonies. All the various Ottoman hierarchy are described in great detail, including the viziers, the aghas and the itchoglans , as also are the mutes and the clowns who were the Sultan’s constant companions. Godfrey Goodwin is the author of The Janissaries and Sinan: Ottoman Architecture and its Values Today .