Centennial Trees
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In order to be considered as "monumental", a tree must be certified by the committees for the Protection of Cultural and Natural Treasure. Age is not the only factor; the tree should also be of above-average size for its species or have a folkloric or historical value. It is forbidden to prune these trees without the permission of the Protection Committee.
According to Prof. Dr. Adnan Uzun, President of the Landscaping Department of the Forestry Faculty of Istanbul University, the age of these monumental trees in Istanbul befits such a historical city, and the centennial trees located in parks, squares, mosque courtyards, gardens of old houses and forests are registered in their inventories.
The most famous ones are listed below:
Eyüp Sultan Çınarı - Eyüp Sultan's Plane
Venue: the outer court of Eyüp Sultan mosque
Family: Eastern Plane
Diameter: 2.87 meters
Height: 20.5 meters
Age: about 600 years old
When Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror conquered Istanbul, he had a mosque built at
the site of Halid bin Zeyd's tomb. Halid bin Zeyd had died during the siege
of the Umayyads. After 600 years, Eyüp Sultan mosque has become one of the most
frequently visited mosques in Istanbul, and this plane is considered to be of
the same age as the mosque.
Taşlı Çınar of Fatih (Fatih's Plane with Stone)
Venue: opposite the gate to Gülhane Park, Eminönü
Family: Eastern Plane
Diameter: 2.30 meters
Height: 23.5 meters
Age: about 300 years old
It is believed that a stone is buried next to this gigantic plane tree located
in the middle of the road leading to Sultanahmet from Sirkeci and that this
stone had startled Fatih's (Mehmet the Conqueror's) gray horse. However, the
tree is not as old as Fatih.
Doğu Çınarı (Eastern Plane)
Venue: In the garden of Midilli Ali Reis Mosque
Family: Anatolian poplar
Circumference: 6 meters
Diameter: 1.91 meters
Age: about 200 years old
Three trees at Fenerbahçe Park
Two of the centennial trees at Fenerbahçe Park are Mediterranean Cypresses,
which are 380 years old and 19 meters high. The other is a gum tree, which is
442 years old and 17 meters high. Sultan Süleyman The Magnificent had an imperial
edict written and ordered a lighthouse built at the peninsula lying opposite
Topkapı Palace and the environment forested. It is assumed that those three
trees are from that period.
Ahtapot Çınarı (Octopus Plane Tree)
Venue: Faculty of Forestry, Education and Research Farm, Bahçeköy-Sarıyer
Family: London Plane tree
Diameter: 3.65 meters
Height: 32 meters
Age: about 500 years old
This plane tree is located on the right of the entrance to Bahçeköy Bilezikçi
Farm and has eight branches. Visits are subject to permission from the Faculty
of Forestry.
Katil Çınar (Murderer Plane Tree)
Venue: behind the Çengelköy Police station
Circumference: 6.6 meters
Diameter: 1.92 meters
Age: about 500 years old
This plane tree is located at Çengelköy Square near the seaside and is surrounded
by tea gardens. One of the dried branches at the top broke, fell and killed
a man who was sitting at the tea garden under the tree. Now the tree stretches
over a distance of 10-15 meters over iron bars placed for support at one-meterintervals.
Aşıklar Çınarı (Lovers' Plane Tree)
Venue: on the terrace next to Çamlıca Gazinosu on Çamlıca hill
Age: about 300 years old
This tree is claimed to be the inspiration for a favorite song. Also, there
is a 450-year-old cypress tree at Çilehane Bahçesi in Küçük Çamlıca.
Beykoz'daki Anıt Ağaçlar (Centennial Trees in Beykoz)
Beykoz is very rich in centennial trees. The most famous of these are the 250-year-old,
25-meter-tall Eastern Plane tree in Beykoz Park, the cedar tree in the garden
of Beykoz Çocuk Göğüs Hastalıkları Hastanesi (Children's Hospital), and the
twin pistachio trees in Paşabahçe. Moreover, six of the fifteen plane trees
located on the road to Akbaba village where the local bazaar is set on Saturdays
are about 300 years old.
Among the Centennial Trees
Hürriyet
Cahit Akyol
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