23 January – 17 February 2013 / Sismanoglio Megaro, Istanbul
Opening: 22/01, 19.00
Place: Sismanoglio Megaro (İstiklal Cad. No 60, Istanbul, tel. 0090 2122448640)
Opening hours: Mo-Fr 15.00-20.00, Sa-Su 12.00-19.00
Co-organization: Consulate General of Greece in Istanbul, TMP
Production: TMP
As part of the program “Cultural Crossroads” (With the financial support of OPAP)
Curator: Vangelis Ioakimidis
The Ottoman Hans of Istanbul
The Ottoman Hans are situated on the hillsides of Mercan, Tahtakale and Beyazit, between the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar in Eminönü district.
The word han derives from the Persian word khaane, which means “home” and “space”. Such buildings can be found throughout the Muslim world, from the former Ottoman Empire and Arabia up to North Africa, Persia and Central Asia. When a han is in the countryside and is located on the high street, it is larger and it is called Caravansera (Caravanserai in Turkish). Within the city, it is called (k)han by the majority of the Arabic, Persian and Turkish speaking world.
The hans provided accommodation to caravan dealers, as well as facilities for lairaging their camels and storing their products. Within the city they also functioned as wholesale centers, from where the merchants would buy goods which they would then sell retail in the Bazaars.
Each han specialized in specific products. Typologically the han had a number of cells and units arranged around a central open courtyard, in the center of which one would usually find a mosque (mestzit) and a fountain. Every han also had a spacious kitchen.
These Ottoman buildings represent important architectural heritage. The variation of stone and brick in the masonry and the decorative brick arches over the windows originate directly from the Byzantine tradition. It is now widely accepted that the secular Ottoman architecture was the continuation and the appropriation of late Byzantine architecture. Therefore, the hans serve as useful tools in one’s attempt to visualize the Byzantine City.
Alex Massavetas