Seraglio

As Seraglio ( Turkish Saray Saray from the Persian / سرای ) of the palace or the residence of a Turkish ruler is called.

The Seraglio is equated mainly with the palace of an Ottoman sultan. Especially in the 18th century it was the epitome of exotic ideas of Europeans from the ( court ) culture of the Ottoman Empire as an example The Abduction from the Seraglio expressed in Mozart's opera.

The large seraglio in Istanbul are considered masterpieces of Ottoman architecture.