Paylan: Why won't Turks admit Dolmabahçe was built by Armenian?

PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish lawmaker of Armenian origin Garo Paylan has declared in the parliament that the Armenian cultural heritage and the appropriated heritage in general are misrepresented in the country, Ermenihaber.am reports.

Addressing fellow lawmakers during a parliament session, Paylan said those in Turkey fail to say out loud that Dolmabahçe Palace in the Beşiktaş district of Istanbul was designed by an Armenian architect.

Paylan told the story of how he and fellow students were taken to Dolmabahçe year ago where a guide said the palace was built by an Italian architect named Baliani. Whereas, he says, he later found out that the building was built by Garabed Balyan, a member of the prominent Ottoman Armenian family of court architects.

In his speech, Paylan questioned the misconception among the public that an Italian architect is better than an Armenian one.

He added that many historic buildings in Istanbul bear the marks of the famous Balyan family.