Istanbul

Historian Darius Arya takes us on an extraordinary journey through the treasures of Istanbul, Turkey. But with many of its secrets concealed or underground, he turns to the latest 3D imaging technology to see the city as no human eye ever could.

Host Darius Arya and historian Kerim Altug go deep underneath the 1,600-year-old Roman chariot racetrack, the Hippodrome, to explore one of the most extraordinary places in this ancient city. Darius and Kerim struggle through the dark to find that the Hippodrome’s passageways were converted into a huge water storage tank - the city’s insurance against drought, fire and siege.

Darius finds the remains of the Great Palace of Constantine are a melancholy reminder of the city’s lost glory. Once gleaming white marble is now blackened and the chapel is now a shelter for the homeless. Our computer graphics give us an idea of the size and grandeur of the original palace.

Deep below a modern carpet shop, host Darius Arya finds an ancient “ayazma” or holy well. Art historian Ferudun Özgümüþ reveals that there is a chapel beneath the shop and below that, the holy well. Our scans show how Istanbul is built on layer upon layer of history - with an ancient trickle of fresh water deep in the foundations of the city.