Gone from Turkey is the harem of the late Sultan Abdul Hamid ("The Damned") with its thousand wives and its scores of eunuchs. The blackamoors whom the Turks brought from Abyssinia and emasculated to stand dispassionate guard over their women, remain. Some have found jobs in Istanbul's national museum. Others work as doormen, waiters, handymen, servants. The rich and successful eunuchs who once held vast power in Turkey, help to maintain clubs near the great oldtime palaces, where the destitute members of their lost calling gather, dress up, observe the old etiquet,...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In