Great Market (Mesē)

Great Market (Mesē)
Name	Mesē (Great Market)
Native name	Μεσῆ
Other name	Great Market
Established	4th–7th centuries CE
Location	Constantinople
Type	Marketplace

Great Market (Mesē) The Great Market (Mesē) was the principal ceremonial and commercial thoroughfare and marketplace of Constantinople from Late Antiquity through the Middle Byzantine period, linking imperial centers such as Hagia Sophia, the Great Palace of Constantinople, and the Forum of Constantine. It functioned as a major urban artery and civic focus during the reigns of emperors like Constantine the Great, Justinian I, and Heraclius, and it figured in events including the Nika riots and the Fourth Crusade. The Mesē integrated trade, processions, and administration, intersecting with landmarks such as the Basilica Cistern, Hippodrome of Constantinople, and the Forum of Theodosius.

History and Origins

The Mesē developed after Constantine I founded Constantinople on the site of Byzantium in 330 CE and reordered urban space around the Forum of Constantine, the Mese Odos, and the Mese axis during late antique rebuilding under Constantine the Great and later extensive reconstruction under Justinian I. It served as a stage for imperial ceremonies recorded in the Chronicon Paschale and echoed in descriptions by Procopius and Theophanes the Confessor. The route witnessed upheavals like the Nika riots in 532 and the sack during the Fourth Crusade in 1204, and it was affected by administrative reforms of rulers including Heraclius and institutions such as the themes. Later references appear in the works of Anna Komnene and travelers like Ibn Battuta and Nicetas Choniates.

Location and Layout

The Mesē ran west–east from the Golden Horn approaches near the Forum of Constantine and Forum Tauri toward the Constantinople landward gates, crossing the Hippodrome of Constantinople and passing the Hagia Sophia complex before reaching the Forum of Theodosius and the Mese termini. Urban features along its length included the Forum of Constantine, the Southern Baths (Basilica) area, the Basilica Cistern, and gateways like the Porta Aurea. Architectural patrons such as Justinian I and Constantine VII left inscriptions and monuments visible along the Mesē, and sculptural programs echoed works found in the Great Palace of Constantinople mosaics and reliefs that parallel those at Ravenna and Antioch. The street’s paving, colonnades, and porticoes reflected Roman precedents seen in Forum Romanum and Hellenistic grids like those of Antioch (ancient).

Commerce and Goods

The Great Market hosted vendors and guilds comparable to those recorded in Constantinople law codes and market regulations promulgated during the reigns of Justinian I and in later statutes of the Komnenian dynasty. Merchants from ports such as Alexandria, Antioch (ancient), Ephesus, and Acre traded spices, silk, grain, and luxury wares, while artisans from Thessalonica, Abydos, and Smyrna sold metalwork, textiles, ceramics, and icons. The Mesē connected to maritime commerce via the Golden Horn and to overland routes like those through Anatolia and the Silk Road, bringing goods including Chinese silk, Persian carpets, Egyptian grain, and Venetian glass traded with agents from Venice, Genoa, and Pisa. Financial activities invoked institutions such as emporia and banking practices later paralleled in the records of Lombard merchants and Merchant guilds referenced in chronicles by Geoffrey of Villehardouin and accounts by Michael Psellos.

Social and Cultural Significance

Beyond commerce, the Mesē functioned as the ceremonial route for imperial processions associated with the Great Palace of Constantinople, coronations recorded in the De Ceremoniis of Constantine VII, and religious observances linked to Hagia Sophia and the Church of the Holy Apostles. Public spectacles at nearby sites like the Hippodrome of Constantinople and civic rituals described by Procopius and John Malalas made the street a focal point for urban identity expressed through art forms similar to mosaics at San Vitale, Ravenna and illuminated manuscripts preserved in the Monastery of Stoudios. The Mesē also hosted festivals that intersected with communal groups documented in sources on Byzantine chant, Orthodox liturgy, and confraternities comparable to fraternities described in records of Mount Athos and Western pilgrimage narratives such as those by Peregrinus.

Administration and Regulation

Control of the Mesē involved imperial officers and urban administrations referenced in documents connected to the Praetorium, the city prefect model inherited from Roman practice, and fiscal systems reformed under Justinian I and later emperors. Market regulation drew on legal frameworks in the Corpus Juris Civilis and municipal ordinances recorded in Byzantine chronicles and seals associated with officials like logothetes and praitorian prefects. Security and policing along the Mesē implicated units akin to the Excubitors and local watch-hierarchies paralleled in sources on Varangian Guard movements and municipal crowd control during disturbances recorded by Theophanes the Confessor and George Pachymeres.

Archaeology and Remains

Archaeological traces of the Mesē survive in excavations around the Forum of Constantine, the Hagia Sophia precinct, and sections exposed by modern works near Sultanahmet and the Archaeological Park of Istanbul. Finds include paved street fragments, column drums, capitals, and inscriptions paralleling material from Sardis, Ephesus, and Aphrodisias, and movable finds such as ceramics, coins, and seals linked to rulers like Heraclius and Justin II. Recoveries have been published in studies by scholars associated with institutions like British Museum, Istanbul Archaeology Museums, and university teams from Oxford University and University of Istanbul, complementing literary evidence from Procopius, Theophanes the Confessor, and Anna Komnene.

Category:Constantinople Category:Byzantine architecture