First established in 1930 as the headquarters of a shipping agency and rebuilt in 1973, Zihni Han is an understated five-storey commercial building located in Tophane, a historic maritime gateway that once linked Istanbul to the Levant. The building has remained intact amid the sweeping waterfront development of Galataport, and was recently refurbished in order to serve as one of the venues for the 18th Istanbul Biennial.