500-year-old shrine lies in pitiful state

Aydemir Kadıoğlu / ISTANBUL

The 500-year-old shrine of Asude Hatun, the foster mother of Sultan Beyazid II, inside the Tahir Ağa Mosque in Istanbul’s Fatih district has been left to its destiny as officials noted that they have no time to take care of the historical shrine.

The windows and the door of the shrine are broken, the sarcophagus is covered with a nylon sack and the area looks more like a construction site than a religious place, according to the locals.

“We do not lay claim to our history. For a month, the shrine has been dirty and dusty. I do not know who made this and for what reason,” said Berkcan Öksüz, a local feeling pity for the shrine.

The officials seemed disinterested regarding the issue.

“We are responsible for the property, but we have budget meetings. So, the related managers are busy,” said Aslı Ceren İnanç, the press counselor of the Directorate General of Foundations.

Hatun was a foster mother who breastfed Sultan Beyazid II, the eldest son and the successor of Sultan Mehmet II.