http://www.vidistanbul.com/historical-places/basilica-cistern/ The Basilica Cistern is the largest & most famous underground Byzantine cistern in Istanbul. It is also known by it's Turkish names Yerebatan Sarnici, or Yerebatan Sarayi, which means "sunken palace". It was constructed in the mid-500's A.D. during the reign of Justinian I in order to supply water to palaces located nearby. Tue, 17 Nov 2009 04:31:51 EET en