A bedesten (variants: bezistan, bezisten, bedestan) is a type of covered market or market hall which was historically found in the cities of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. It was typically the central building of the commercial district of an Ottoman town or city, where the most important and precious goods (like gold and jewellery) were kept and sold. Its function was comparable or equivalent to that of a ''qaysariyya'' in other (usually

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

-speaking) regions, though the architecture of the latter could be different and be similar to that of a

bazaar A bazaar or souk is a marketplace consisting of multiple small Market stall, stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia, North Africa and South Asia. They are traditionally located in vaulted or covered streets th ...

with its own streets.

Etymology

The origin of the word is from Persian بزازستان ''bazzāzestān'', which means 'place of drapers'. The word includes Persian suffix -''istan''. Ottomans pronounced it as Bazzistan and Bedesten.

History and function

The bedesten is a type of building that developed in the early

Ottoman architecture Ottoman architecture is an architectural style or tradition that developed under the Ottoman Empire over a long period, undergoing some significant changes during its history. It first emerged in northwestern Anatolia in the late 13th century an ...

of the 15th century. Bedestens originally began as a place to house fabric and

textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...

sellers but eventually more precious goods were stored here. As this type of building was more secure and could be locked at night, it became the place where the most important goods (e.g. gold and jewellery) were stored, protected, regulated, and sold. Besides the trading of jewellery and textiles,

slaves Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

were also sold in bedestens. Expert merchants in bedestans also assisted in commercial disputes, and in some cases officials were employed here to carry out similar regulatory duties. '' Waqf'' agreements (inalienable trusts in

Islamic law Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on scriptures of Islam, particularly the Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' refers to immutable, intan ...

) governed the function and upkeep of the bedesten and could provide salaries for these employees. Tenants could even rent booths in the bedesten from these waqfs. The bedesten was such an important building that during Ottoman times cities were often classified under two categories: cities with a bedesten and cities without a bedesten.Kreiser, Klaus: „Bedesten-Bauten im Osmanischen Reich. Ein vorläufiger Überblick auf Grund der Schriftquellen.“, in: Istanbuler Mitteilungen (Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Abteilung Istanbul) 2, pp.367-400 (Tübingen 1979), reprint in Istanbul und das Osmanische Reich. Derwischwesen, Baugeschichte, Inschriftenkunde. Istanbul: Isis 1995. 286 S. (Analecta Isisiana. 14) pp.61-96. The first major bedestens were constructed in the capitals of the Ottoman Empire which served as economic hubs of the empire. The bedesten of Bursa was built in the late 14th century by Sultan Yildirim Bayezid I during his reign between 1389 and 1402. The bedesten of

Edirne Edirne (; ), historically known as Orestias, Adrianople, is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the Edirne Province, province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian borders, Edirne was the second c ...

was built by Sultan Mehmed I between 1413 and 1421. The first Bedesten in Istanbul, variously known as the Inner Bedesten (''Iç Bedesten''), Old Bedesten (''Eski Bedesten'' or ''Bedesten-i Atik''), or the Jewellers' Bedesten (''Cevahir Bedesteni''), was built on the orders of Sultan Mehmed II Fatih between 1456 and 1461, soon after his conquest of the city. A second bedesten, the Sandal Bedesten, also known as the Small Bedesten (''Küçük Bedesten'') or New Bedesten (''Bedesten-i Cedid''), was built by Mehmed II about a dozen years later. These two bedestens formed the original core of Istanbul's Grand Bazaar, which grew around them over the following generations. Some Ottoman bedestens, including the ones in Bursa, Edirne, and Istanbul, are still operating as commercial centers today.

Architecture

Bedestens normally have a rectangular floor plan, with a main chamber inside covered by domes and walled-off from the outside except for designated doorways. Their design was derived in part from the design of Ottoman

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

s. Often there were shops on the outside perimeter, but the interior chamber was where the most important goods were stored and sold.

Examples of ''bedesten''s

Numerous bedestens were built during the Ottoman Empire, a number of which have survived today. Some of the most notable examples include the following: *Iç Bedesten in the Grand Bazaar of

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

(built between 1456 and 1461) *Sandal Bedesten in the Grand Bazaar of Istanbul (built shortly after the Iç Bedesten) *Bedesten of Bursa, Turkey (built between 1389 and 1402) *Bedesten of

, Turkey (built between 1413 and 1421) *Mahmut Paşa Bedesten in

Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...

, Turkey (built in late 15th century; today it houses part of the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations) *Gazi-Husrev Beg's Bezistan in Baščaršija,

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

. * Brusa Bezistan, also in Sarajevo * Bezistan in Old Bazaar,

Skopje Skopje ( , ; ; , sq-definite, Shkupi) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It lies in the northern part of the country, in the Skopje Basin, Skopje Valley along the Vardar River, and is the political, economic, and cultura ...

, Macedonia * Bezistan in Bitola, Macedonia * Bedesten of Serres,

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

(today it houses the Archaeological Museum of Serres) * Bedesten of Larissa, Greece * Bedesten in Nicosia,

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

(originally a Greek Orthodox church from the 6th and 14th centuries, architecturally different from all other Ottoman bedestens) * Bedesten of Thessaloniki, Greece There are also reproductions after the Ottoman era, such as Bezistan, Belgrade.

References

Sources

* {{cite encyclopedia , first = Semavi , last = Eyice , author-link = Semavi Eyice , title = Bedesten , pages = 302–311 , encyclopedia = İslâm Ansiklopedisi, Vol. 5 (Balaban - Beşir Ağa) , year = 1992 , location = Istanbul , publisher = Turkiye Diyanet Vakfi , language = tr , url = http://www.islamansiklopedisi.info/dia/pdf/c05/c050219.pdf

External links

Bedestan Website (Turkish)
Ottoman architecture Commercial buildings