The Istavroz Baths are a historic Ottoman hammam in Üsküdar District on the Asian shore of Istanbul, in a neighborhood whose name Istavroz derives from the Greek word for cross, reflecting the Byzantine and Greek heritage of this community on the Bosphorus hillside. Üsküdar, known in Byzantine times as Chrysopolis, was the first stopping point in Asia for travelers crossing from Europe, and its hammams served a population that mixed Ottoman Muslims with Greek Orthodox Christians, Jews, and Armenian merchants who had long inhabited this diverse quarter. The baths provided essential hygienic and social services to the multicultural community of Istavroz overlooking the waters of the Bosphorus.
Insider tip — Istavroz Hammam (stavros = cross in Greek) in Üsküdar/Beykoz, on the Asian side of Istanbul. The Istavroz is a hill overlooking the Bosphorus where a Byzantine cross once stood, later replaced by the Istavroz Pavilion (Istavroz Kasrı), an Ottoman pleasure residence surrounded by forests. This Byzantine name preserved in Ottoman toponymy attests to Istanbul's cultural continuity.
