Ghost Writers

GATE of GRANDEUR

    The Galatasaray High School's origins date back to the 15th century, when on a hunting expedition in the area, then a thickly wooded forest, Sultan Beyazit II came upon an old man who had fought in the surrounding of Istanbul in 1453. At the end of this encounter, the man presented the sultan with one red and one yellow rose from his garden (the colors of the Galatasaray soccer team) and requested that a house of learning be built on the spot. The school was founded in 1481 as Galata Sarayi, the fourth of a network of existing palace schools. During the era of the Tanzimat, the school became a window onto the West, and much of Turkish-French relations have their origins here. For the past 500 years, Galatasaray High School has graduated grand viziers and palace administrators, and later, prime ministers, poets, artists, and journalists. Even today, the high school continues to set the standards of learning for all of Turkey.
    
     
   The school has an enormous gate which has unique and sophisticated illustrations on it. What strikes people in the first place is its monumental stand in the middle of the maddening crowd. The gate looks grandioso as if it belongs to a palace more than a high school. It gives the impression that it can hold any people from any social and intellectual status. It arouses one’s interest with its extraordinary structure which creates a mystic aura. That mysticism draws people around this gate.
   

                                                                                            

  There are many symbols and figures on the gate such as torches, swords and bugles. On the very top of the gate, there are old writings in Ottoman Turkish which indicate historical value of Galatasaray High School. There is also a figure on the top resembling the sun which is composed of bronze sticks. In the very middle of that sun, there is a tugra- sultan’s signature- framed by a star figure. The ostentatious colors and  the tugra on the gate indicates the wealth of the period  and the richness of their culture. However, the priceless tugra on the gate was replaced by a fake one made by Ziya Ebuzziya, after it had been stolen.
   

   

  Besides its being a gorgeous school gate, it has a centric location which serves for certain purposes such as strikes, meetings, advertisings and touristic visits. Hosting such a huge crowd makes this place chaotic so it requires precaution of security. A lot of people from many walk of life are gathering together here regardless of any differences. People impose different meanings to that place. While some people use it to meet with their friends, others gather there to make themselves heard. To sum up, while this place is just a high school in appearance, it evokes different thoughts in different minds.

Galatasaray High School


Group Members:


Gülşah Karabıyık
Gülçin Koç
Sinem Akdağ
Tuğba Baltacı
Meral Turhan
Fatma Hergül