Cemberlitas is the area located on the place where was located the ancient Forum of Constantine. Of all the buildings of this complex survived only partially column of Constantine. This column for a long time considered the main symbol of the Byzantine Empire. It was erected by Emperor Constantine on 11 may 330 ad, after the conquest them on 18 September 324 years of the city of Byzantium. It happened on 8 November 324, during the celebrations of the proclamation of the new capital of the Roman Empire - Constantinople. From the outset, it was the pedestal for the statue of the Emperor. This column has been a Central element on the Grand square, which was also posted colonnade of statues of Christian saints and pagan gods.

Currently it is called "the bath" (which translates as "Rock with rings"). The only figure of this column, which has been preserved and have come down to our times, is dated 1574 year and stored in the library of Trinity College in the English city of Cambridge. The construction can be reached if you walk from Sultanahmet square in the direction of the Grand Bazaar Istanbul and square Beyazit street Sofa Yola.

It was erected in the centre of the Forum of Constantine, who at that time was built the second city hill, just beyond the defensive walls of the old Byzantium. Then this forum was a square oval shape, surrounded by an impressive marble colonnade, which had two monumental gate facing the West and to the East of the city. It was decorated with many beautiful antique statues, the location of which is now impossible to determine.

Column is made in the form of a truncated regular four-stage pyramid and erected a five-meter base, made of porphyry. It was located a chair columns having a square shape and is decorated with bas-relief. The trunk, which had a height of twenty five feet, consisted of seven drums, the diameter of which was about three meters. The drums were covered by metal hoops with gold closed with wreaths of bronze. All the drums were also porphyry, except the eighth, he was made of marble. Crowned by the majestic building marble capital. On Abaca capitals was erected Golden Imperial statue in the form of the God Apollo, fused to her with a nail from the cross of the son of God. For this reason, the residents of the city of Constantinople originally was called the monument "a Pillar of a Nail". The height of the monument was about 38 meters.

During an earthquake, 600 – 601, which occurred at the end of the reign of the Emperor Maurice, the statue of Constantine the Great collapsed quite badly injured, and the column itself. It was completely restored during the reign of Emperor Heraclius (610 – 641), and in 1081 – 1118, during the reign of Alexios I, the statue fell to the ground from penetrating into the zipper and pressed a few passers-by. The monument was restored only during the reign of Emperor Manuel I (1143 – 1180), but soon there was another collapse of the statue, and it was replaced by the cross. After this event, the monument received a new vernacular name "Column with the Cross". Later, after 1204, this building was grievously injured by the actions of crusaders. The Foundation was weakened by the tunnel that was dug for the purpose of search of relics, and the bas-relief was removed and taken to Western Europe. At the present time part of it, which the Turks call "Tetrarchy", was imbedded in the wall of St. Mark's Cathedral in Venice.

In the second half of the twentieth century, during excavations made in Constantinople, was found missing element of the bas-relief, which are now kept in the archaeological Museum of Istanbul. After the fall of Constantinople occurred in early June, 1453, the Turks threw the cross with this column.

In 1779 a strong fire, which occurred in the vicinity of the square, destroyed most of the buildings, and the column after that left the black spots from the fire. The column was nicknamed the "Burnt column" after this event. Sultan Abdulhamid I Cemberlitas was restored and made new laying the foundations. Were replaced by the iron hoops on new. This helped to keep the column in the following centuries in a vertical position. The first base of the column was located approximately 3 meters below the current level. This means that the column, which is presented today for viewing by tourists, is, actually, the only part of the original structure.

Haluk Egemen Sarica - Turkish parapsychologist in one of his works wrote about this column as follows: "As every sacred structure, Cemberlitas, probably due to the groundwater system of the area". Confirmation of these words was found in the 1930-ies during archaeological excavations in the vicinity of the column of Constantine, in which were found the halls made in the form of a maze. From this came the belief that the bath is a gate providing access to the underground galleries of Istanbul.