Only slight remains of the once important Byzantine Damatrys Palace survive in Sancaktepe in the Asian part of the city. Believed to date back to the reign of the Emperor Tiberius I Constantine (578-82), the palace was completed in the reign of Emperor Maurice (582-602) and named after the Greek goddess Demeter as was the surrounding area at the time.
The palace may have served as an outlying hunting lodge for the emperors set amid grounds that echoed the Umayyad gardens of the Middle East. However, it may also have been a resting place for the emperor when he was returning from forays into Anatolia. Unfortunately the palace fell into disrepair and was abandoned in the 13th century. The ruins are now surrounded by urban sprawl.
