Some tulips within the first courtyard of Topkapi Palace.
I didn’t know until I traveled to Turkey this month that tulips are native to Central Asia and Turkey, so I did a little online research when I got back home. Istanbul has planted three million tulips in Istanbul's parks, avenues, & traffic roundabouts every April since 2006.
A large tulip monument in the park between Aya Sofia and the Blue Mosque. (Aside- notice how the fountain mimics the minarets of the mosques.)
In the 16th Century they were brought to Holland, and quickly became widely popular there, which explains why we associate tulips with the Dutch. The Tulip Era (1718-1730) was an Ottoman Renaissance, a time of political, social and cultural advancement. This was the time of Sultan Ahmed III, a time of peace, renovations, and reforms, a little Ottoman renaissance that stemmed from an increasing concern and curiosity towards Europe. Tulip prices began to rise in the last decades of the seventeenth century and peaked in 1726-1727 before state intervention. This reflected the demand for the inflated value of the rare bulbs and escalating demands for flowers in the elite’s palaces and gardens.
Tulips along the waterfront on an overcast day.
The Turkish tourism logo features a tulip (see it here http://www
Souvenir mugs for sale in the Spice Market also feature the tulips.
And is it a coincidence that Turkish tea is served in tulip-shaped glasses? I will have to search a little longer to get the answer to this question.
Citations
http://www.travellinkturkey.com/ottoman_tulip_era.html
http://www.allaboutturkey.com/tulip.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulip_era
http://www.turkeytravelplanner.com/articles/TakingTeaInTk.html
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