Regarding the restoration of the Maiden's Tower, Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy said, “The Ministry of Culture and Tourism has decided to do something that no one has dared for 80 years. We have embraced all kinds of disinformation. We detect all errors together with our instructors and remove them gradually and in a controlled manner. Afterwards, it will be made in its original form, as it was during the reign of Mahmut II, with original materials.” said.
Minister Ersoy, in the advisory board of the Maiden's Tower restoration Prof. Dr. Feridun Cili, Prof. Dr. Drawing attention to the presence of Zeynep Ahunbay and Architect Han Tümertekin, “After being supported by the reports prepared by Istanbul Technical University and Fatih Sultan Mehmet Foundation University, studies on how to implement the projects are sent to our conservation committees. After the approval of our conservation boards, restoration activities are carried out.” used the phrases.
Underlining that the place was used as a restaurant with the tender held in 1998, Ersoy said that as the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, they aim to open the building to visitors as a memorial museum.
Pointing out that cement, concrete and rebar were used in the restoration of the Maiden's Tower in 1944, Ersoy said:
“Cement is now considered as an objectionable material in restorations in Turkey. Chemical-containing salts used in concrete cause corrosion. It also causes damage to the original material in the building. These structures were designed and built hundreds of years ago. In other words, the load on it was calculated according to the material at that time. When you use concrete and rebar, you increase the load of the structure incredibly and make it far from the static structure it should be. It causes serious damage to the structure in the medium and long term. There is another feature of this building. This building is not just something that sits on land. It's actually an island platform. So the structure has an upper static. There is also a static under the platform, under the sea. I don't want to blame too much. At that time there was no current geothermal and laser scanning technology. You can already find the vulnerabilities of the structure in your radar scans.”
“18. It will regain its appearance at the end of the century”
Emphasizing that the part upwards from the balcony terrace of the building was originally designed in wood, Ersoy stated that the Maiden's Tower, which had a different appearance in different centuries, will regain its appearance in the late 18th century, the date on which the most information and documents are found, after the restoration works.
Minister Ersoy underlined that both the restoration in 1944 and the renovations in 1999 were freed from inaccurate additions, and said, “When these reinforced concrete surfaces and plasters were removed, a much more troublesome situation was encountered. It has been seen that concrete columns and beams are not actually connected to each other. This is one of the biggest problems. In other words, the structure is quite suitable for collapse in a moderate earthquake. Our teachers see that the building is made of concrete, including the flagpole, and that it is cracking too.” made its assessment.
Emphasizing that the dismantling was done very carefully and using the latest technology, Ersoy added that the X-ray of the building was taken with georadar and laser scanning, and the gaps caused by faulty static loading were filled with the injection system and made it earthquake resistant again.
“How will this country move forward if we cannot face disinformation?”
Mehmet Nuri Ersoy underlined that the steel tension system applied to the building will be removed and the terrace balcony part will be restored to its original wooden state, and gave the following information:
“We started this work in September 2021. We held a press conference with our teachers and explained the procedures we will do here. In the name of transparency, we launched the 'www.kizkulesi.com' website. We publish all of the transactions made here with their documents. If you visit the site, you will see the detailed reports prepared by both Istanbul Technical University and Fatih Sultan Mehmet University on statics.
Unfortunately, we encounter this disinformation problem a lot in our time. After launching last year, one of our editorial friends said, 'You had to intervene in a very important structure. There will be massive disinformation. Can you breastfeed?' he had asked. Likewise, senior executives of my Ministry said, 'We are making radical changes in the structure. The structure requires interventions, static problems arose. We will face it with a lot of disinformation. What are we gonna do?' said. I said, 'Friends, if he doesn't intervene, if you don't intervene, if I don't interfere, if we don't fight disinformation, how will this country move forward?' Let's do the right projects with the right people, let's do it in accordance with science as it should be done. But eventually the truth will come out.”
Noting that the Ministry of Culture and Tourism carried out restorations on important buildings such as the Galata Tower and the Atlas Cinema Museum throughout Istanbul, Ersoy urged citizens who know the previous state of these buildings to see their later state.
Minister Ersoy stated that they aim to complete the restoration at the end of the year and open it to visitors in January and February, and said, “The Maiden's Tower can be visited with the Müzekart, like all other museums under our Ministry. We want to open this place to the visit of the whole world, especially the Turkish people. As you know, the Müzekart is only given to Turkish citizens and its price is 60 liras.” he said.
Stating that the Maiden's Tower is one of the 5 most viewed structures in the world, Minister Ersoy said, “The Maiden's Tower was a structure that Istanbulites could watch from afar. Now it will be turned into a building where Istanbul can be watched from the inside.” made its assessment.
After the statements, Minister Ersoy, Prof. Dr. Feridun Çılı had a souvenir photo taken with Architect Han Tümertekin and Üsküdar Mayor Hilmi Türkmen.
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