The Evolution of Istanbul, In Maps

Istanbul has been in the headlines recently for the most heartbreaking news. But long before it became the stage for geopolitical instability, it was a bustling metropolis with a rich and complicated urban history.

A new online archive allows viewers to pull the curtains back and observe some crucial milestones in the megacity’s evolution. The Istanbul Urban Database, created by Nil Tuzcu, a researcher at Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and her colleagues at the Harvard Mellon Urban Initiative, is a one-stop shop to view historical maps, plans, photographs, and transportation routes, all of which “contribute to the collective memory of Istanbul,” the creators write in a press release.