German Fountain

This ornate domed pavilion at the northern end of the Hippodrome was a gift from Kaiser Wilhelm II to commemorate his visit to Sultan Abdulhamid II in 1898. Prefabricated in Germany and assembled in Istanbul in 1900, it combines a neo-Byzantine octagonal canopy with a gilded mosaic interior bearing the monograms of the two rulers. Eight marble columns support the green copper dome above a public drinking fountain. Standing between grand imperial mosques, it recalls the diplomatic ties between the Ottoman and German empires.