Professor Jane Hathaway was interviewed by Leslie Peirce about her book, "The Chief Eunuch of the Ottoman Harem: From African Slave to Power-Broker" at the Hagop Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies at NYU on Nov. 30th. Prof. Hathaway stated that the 19th century tanzimat reforms were an attempt to deinstitutionalize the office of the Chief Eunuch and that the influence of the once-powerful figure eroded through the end of the palace harem in the early 20th century.