O Where Are Kings and Empires Now

In 2013 I had the opportunity to travel to Istanbul. I was there for a week so I had the chance to visit a number of historic sites in the city.

Istanbul, of course, is the modern permutation of Constantinople, the wealthiest city in the ancient world. Constantinople was the gateway to the wealth of the East. The Italian city states of Venice and Genoa had branch offices there to get a piece of the action. These cities dominated trade, and became fabulously wealthy as a result.

One of the most interesting sites was the Hippodrome. The Hippodrome was a circus, a long chariot track. Chariot racing was central to Roman identity. It was one of the premier entertainments along with gladitorial contests. But this wasn’t just any circus. It was the Emperor’s circus. It ran alongside the royal palace, and the Emperor had a special box that was accessible to the palace. This was royal theater at its best. The Hippodrome was not just used for chariot races, but was also used for large imperial public events.

The Hippodrome now sits next to the Blue Mosque, which stands on the site of the Church of the Holy Apostles, the burial site of Byzantine Emperors for centuries. The outline of the track is still there, with the track itself paved with asphalt. Chariots don't race there anymore. Taxis do. The perimeter is mostly cafes and shops--a number of shops selling pashmina shawls and things like that.

As I sat at a cafe I thought about the chariot races that were held there and tried to imagine them whipping around the curve. I also thought about the emperor Justinian luring the rival factions after the Nike riots into the Hippodrome, then shutting the gates and slaughtering 30,000 of them. A profound moment.

The base of the obelisk, which came from Alexandria and was erected by the emperor Theodosius in the late 4th century, has reliefs depicting the Emperor and his court, including the submission of the barbarians. I spent some time with this, thinking about the moment captured in time, when Byzantium was in its glory, the Emperor ruled over the world, and everything was wonderful and stable. The marvelous thing about art such as this is that it freezes a moment in time. It's a fantasy, I know, but it's wonderful to be drawn into this fantasy scene for a few minutes. In this sculpture, the Emperor is eternally reviewing the charioteers and waving to the adoring crowds. It's almost as if everything that happened after never actually happened--the Crusades, the World Wars, the Holocaust, 9/11. How much history has passed by the relief of the Emperor and his retinue awarding the laurel wreath to the winner of the race. This gave me pause, looking on a scene from 1600 years ago, when the Emperor couldn't imagine anything better than what he saw from his private box. This was a wonderful opportunity to reflect on mortality. It makes me think of the opening line of an old hymn:

O where are kings and empires now
Of old that went and came?