Wish List: The Grand Bazaar of Istanbul

One of the things on my wish list was this book ~ 

The Turkish Grand Bazaar is celebrating its 550 year anniversary this year and to mark the occasion, they had a special concert on Christmas Day by the talented pianist, Tulughan Ugurlu  .

Photographed by Laziz Hamani, written by Serdar Gülgün, and published by Assouline, the incredible tome documents the spirit of the Turkish Grand Bazaar.  If you get a chance, go.  It is truly one of the most inspiring places I have ever been.

The book features a lot of the sights in the market.  Stalls and stalls of rugs, lamps, leather goods, lighting, and pottery.  You can't capture the smells and sounds or the feeling you get when you walk thru the foreign maze of hallways, but the book paints a close picture.

The Inner Bedestan is the oldest part of the market, built after the Ottoman invasion of Turkey by Sultan Menmet II the Conquerer in 1461.  That's a lot of history.  It is overwhelming walking the cobblestones in the footsteps of so many before you.  The culture has been a source of inspiration for literally centuries of artisans.

 This felt by far the most foreign of places I have seen and I want more! 

I became completely enamored with the Iznik tiles I saw at The Topkapi Palace.  Iznik was the center of Ottoman tile making, hence the name.  The prized blue and white porcelain embellished with an Ottoman arabesque pattern was commissioned by the Sultan.  He wanted to replicate the 15th century blue and white Chinese Ming porcelain that was felt to be so beautiful.

And ~ it comes wrapped in a delicious silk ikat fabric.  This will be quite a beautiful edition to my library.

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