Grand Bazaar, Istanbul - Social History of The Grand Bazaar

Social History of The Grand Bazaar

Until the restoration following the quake of 1894, the grand Bazaar had no shops as we know them in the western world: along both sides of the roads merchants sat on wooden divans in front of their shelves. Each of them got a space 6 to 8 feet (1.8 to 2.4 m) in length, and 3 to 4 feet (0.91 to 1.2 m) in depth. The name of this space was in Turkish Dolap, meaning stall. The most precious merchandise was not on display, but kept in cabinets. Only clothes were hanged in long rows, with a picturesque effect. A prospective client could sit in front of the dealer, talk with him and drink a tea or a turkish coffee, in a totally relaxed way. At the end of the day, each stall was closed with drapes. Another peculiarity was the totally lack of advertising. Moreover, as everywhere in the East, traders of the same type of good were forcibly concentrated along one road, which got its name from their profession. The inner Bedesten hosted the most precious wares: jewelers, armorers, crystal dealers had their shops there. The Sandal Bedesten was mainly the center of the silk trade, but also other goods were on sale there. The most picturesque parts of the market were - aside the two Bedesten - the shoe market (Turkish: Pabuççular Pazarı), where thousands of shoes of different colors (Turks were bound to wear only yellow shoes, Greeks blue, Jews black and Armenian red) were on display on high shelves, the spice and herbs market (later concentrated in the Egyptian Bazaar), which stood near the jewelers, the armor and weapon market, the old book market and the flea market.

This kind of organization disappeared gradually, although nowadays a concentration of the same business along certain roads can be observed again:

• Jewelers and gold bracelets along Kalpakcılar Caddesi;
• Gold bracelets along Kuyumcular Carsısı;
• Furniture along Divrikli Caddesi;
• Carpets along Sahaflar Caddesi;
• Leather goods along Perdahçılar Caddesi
• Leather and casual clothes at the Bit Pazarı;

Actually, the main reason of concentrating the trade in one place was to provide the highest security against theft, fire and uprising. The goods in the Bedesten were guaranteed against everything except turmoils. Gates were always closed at night, and the bazaar was patrolled by guards paid by the merchants' guilds. In order to access the complex during night hours, an imperial edict was required. The only official night opening during the story of Bazaar occurred during the feast organized for the return of Sultan Abdülaziz from Egypt, when the Sovereign crossed the illuminated market riding an horse among the rejoicing populace. Despite the immense wealth present in the Bazaar during centuries (still around 1870, according to an English traveler a tour of the inner Bedesten could easily ruin a few Rothschild families), thievery occurred extremely seldom. The most important happened in 1591, when 30,000 gold coins (Turkish: Altın) were stolen in the old Bedesten. The fact shocked the whole Istanbul. The Bazaar remained closed for two weeks and people were tortured, until the money was found hidden under the floor matting. The culprit was a young Persian, seller of Musk. Thanks to the intercession of the Sultan Murad III he was executed by hanging and not by torture.

The ethics of trade in the Market until the Tanzimat age (half of the 19th century) was quite different from the modern one: indifference to profit, absence of envy in the successes of other traders and a single and correct price were peculiar traits of the Ottoman bazaar during its golden age. The reason for such behavior lies partly in the ethics of Islam, and partly in the guild system which provided a strong social security net to the merchants. Afterward, the westernization of the Ottoman society and the influence of the national minorities caused the introduction of the mercantile ethics in the Ottoman society.

Right during the westernization of the Ottoman Society, the Grand Bazaar became an obliged topos of the romantic literature. We owe fascinating descriptions of the Bazaar at the middle of 19th century to writers as Edmondo De Amicis and Théophile Gautier.

Another peculiarity of the market during the Ottoman age was the total lack of restaurants. The absence of women in the social life and the nomadic conventions in the Turkish society made the concept of restaurant alien. Merchants brought their lunch in a food box called sefertas, and the only food on sale was simple dishes such as doner kebab, tavuk göğsü (a dessert prepared with chicken breast, milk sugar and rose water sprinkled on it) and Turkish coffee. This simple dishes were prepared and served in small two-story kiosks placed in the middle of a road. The most famous among these kiosks is the one - still existing but not functioning anymore - placed at the crossing of Halıcılar Caddesi and Acı Çesme Caddesi. It is alleged that Sultan Mahmut II came there often in disguise to eat his pudding. The Bazaar was in the Ottoman Age the place where the Istanbullu (so are named the inhabitants of the city) could see each other. Not only the market was the only place in town where the ladies could go relatively easily, (and this circumstance made the place especially interesting for the Europeans who visited the city) but - especially from the Tanzimat age - was also the only public place where the average citizen had a chance to meet casually the members of the Harem and of the Court.

Bazaar's merchants were organized in guilds. In order to establish a new one, it was only necessary to have enough traders of the same good. Afterward, a monopoly was formed and the number of traders and shops was frozen. One could only be accepted in the guild through cooptation, either as son of a deceased member, or after paying a suitable sum to a member who wanted to retire. The guild's chef was a public officer called Kethüda. He was paid by the guild but appointed by the Kadı of Istanbul. Fixation of prices and taxes were matter of the Kethüda. He was joined by a representative of the guild's member, called Yiğitbaşı (in English: Chief of the brave young fellows). These two officers were flanked by the assembly of the eldest, non necessarily old in age, but most experienced traders. Parallel to the guilds, there were purely religious organizations, called fütüvvet tariks . Their members met in Dervish monasteries and performed religious functions. These organizations became less and less important with time due to the increased weight of the Greek, Armenian and Jews merchants in bazaar's trade. Each guild had a financial department which collected a moderate monthly fee (some silver coins; Turkish: Kuruş) from the members and administered it taking care of the needs of each associated person. The guilds lost increasingly their importance during the Tanzimat period, and were abolished in 1913, being replaced by an association of Bazaar merchants. Nowadays, there are several merchant associations in the Bazaar, but none is representative of the whole seller community.