Selected articles
A Short History of Ancient Lycia, the Home of Liberty
To make their honoured guest feel welcome they transported galleys full of the golden sand of Egypt so that Cleopatra would feel at home. It worked, Antony and Cleopatra loved the sandy beach and the temporary escape from their royal cares
Ten Good Reasons to Go to Istanbul
Lunch late but well on fish and mussels, getting the last boat back so that you time your return to witness a sun set over the skyline of Istanbul.
Review: “The Art of Exile” by John Freely
We learn the harshness of those times when he asks his mother if they are working class and is told that they could be if his father could only hold down his job – and by inference keep a lid on his drinking.
Empire Builder: the legacy of Ottoman architect Sinan
As the great mosques are commanded by one dome, so is the Empire ruled by one Sultan, his authority buttressed by a descending authority of viziers, pashas, beylerbeys and aghas. Together, they shelter the believer.
My first copy of Stamboul Sketches by John Freely
But the gift of the book that day, Stamboul Sketches - kick-started a lifelong love of drifting through Istanbul, on the look out for the odd things, as well as its ancient, glorious and modern monuments.
Review: 123 Places in Turkey: A Private Grand Tour by Francis Russell
You will also require a stick, thick trousers and tough boots if you aspire to follow in his footsteps, let alone join him in enjoying the view from the acropolis.
Review: “East of Asia Minor, Rome's Hidden Frontier” by Timothy Bruce
Until the publication of this book, no archaeologist had ever worked out the five-hundred-mile route, no historian had written about its forts and no travel writer had marched its length. Yet it guarded some of the richest and most civilized provinces of the entire Empire.
Reading Between the Lines, an article on Osman Hamdi Bey - Parisian painter and Ottoman archaeologist
In Young Woman Reading, the book that lies open, respectfully wrapped in a linen cloth embroidered in silk, is written in Persian in Arabic script.
Travelling through the Troad with Don McCullin
Antinous was the beautiful, brave boy from the hills of North-West Turkey who loved hunting. He had become the Emperor’s acknowledged lover but at the height of their relationship he had drowned in the Nile, possibly an act of self-sacrifice on behalf of his beloved Emperor
Review: Troy - Myth and Reality exhibition at the British Museum
The museum interior is a four-storey tower of enchantment.
Troy Story 1: Lost and Found
The museum interior is a four-storey tower of enchantment.
A journey across Roman Asia Minor with Don McCullin
We were an odd group, one thin Turk from Antakya, one plump English publisher, a Turkish speaking New Yorker and the world’s most famous war photographer, Don McCullin.
On the Road Again with Don McCullin: Heading to Southwest Anatolia on the final leg of our Roman Roads adventure
I watched as the rain brought the colours of the circular marble floor of the orchestra pit into life, so the face of Medusa and her serpents glowed within an aura of ten rows of stylized feathers.