Ayaspaşa Cemetery

With the exception of a few tombstones to be found in the garden of the German Consulate today, the Ayaspaşa Cemetery, which extended from Taksim to the slopes of Dolmabahçe and Fındıklı, is no longer present. The cemetery is originally named after Ayas Paşa, who served as a vizier during the reign of Süleyman I (the Magnificent) (1520-1566) and had a pavillion in the area. Referred to as the “Grand Champ des Morts” (The Grand Cemetery) by Levantines and Western travellers, this burial site bordered the Surp Agop Armenian Cemetery, which still encompasses an area that begins at the Taksim Gezi Park and extends towards the Harbiye quarter. A significant number of leading historic personalities were buried in this cemetery. However, as of the mid-19th century, the cemetery began to shrink in size as a consequence Beyoğlu’s expansion towards Taksim. In the 1930s, during the construction of the apartments lined along Ayaspaşa Boulevard, the final vestiges of the cemetery disappeared from sight, most unfortunately, before any studies and inventories could be conducted on the burial site.