Well, the answer is yes and no.
Yes – because Izmir was an important Ottoman port and there are mosques, hans, bazaars and hammams from the Ottoman era.
No – because it was never really as important as Istanbul, Bursa, Konya, Edirne, Amasya, Kütahya and Manisa. Consequently, it didn’t receive attention given to the Ottoman capital cities or places where imperial princes governed, in preparation to rule as sultans.
I’ve decided to dedicate this article to the Ottoman heritage in Izmir because it’s precious and interesting to see, plus I’ve tremendously enjoyed the old historic area.
OTTOMAN IZMIR IN KEMERALTI BAZAAR QUARTER
While the most attractive part of Izmir is the seafront, its most interesting part is the Kemeralti Bazaar Quarter.
Kemeralti retained its originality, streets and buildings are mostly as they used to be centuries ago. It’s a large area, a maze of streets that spread in all directions.
As a matter of fact, once I was deep inside of the bazaar, I lost my orientation and had to check the map, to find the way out. I mention this just to give you an idea of its size, the bazaar is big.
The same as in other Turkish cities there are shops everywhere. There are so many of them and they offer all kind of merchandise. You quickly become dazzled and you no longer know where to look.
Turkey has a strong textile industry and most items on offer in these bazaars are produced in Turkish factories. That’s so different compared with shops in the west, where almost everything comes from China. Clearly, Turks are very clever to keep and look after their industrial production. Let’s not forget that Turkey has the centuries long mercantile tradition.
All that is still very visible today, especially in Istanbul, where the abundance of goods produced in Turkey is astonishing.

I went to Kemeralti several times, at different times. While I didn’t see many people in the morning, the afternoon hours were extremely busy, especially after the afternoon prayer time.
I didn’t buy anything. For me, it was enough to aimlessly walk through narrow streets and observe shops, goods on offer and people around me.

COFFEE SHOPS AND RESTAURANTS
Within the Bazaar Quarter you will also find a section, in fact several streets, with many coffee shops.

It’s a perfect place where you can sit down and have a rest. It was very hot when I was in Izmir, so spending several hours there during the hottest part of the day, protected from the oppressive heat, felt like salvation.
I would’ve gone to the beach, but Izmir doesn’t have a beach. So, this was the second best option.
Different establishments have differently designed cloths for their tables and chairs. Together, they project a striking oriental image. There are also some restaurants in this area and one evening I had my dinner in one of them. Food was delicious and a very good value for money.

HISAR MOSQUE (1598)
The Bazaar Quarter is also where you will find Ottoman era mosques and other buildings. I visited different parts of Izmir but it’s here that the Ottoman heritage is most prominent. You will mainly see new constructions in other parts of the city, although that doesn’t mean that you can’t find some Ottoman heritage there either. But Ottoman Izmir is in Kemeralti.
When you walk around the Bazaar Quarter, in addition to numerous shops, coffee shops and restaurants, there are also historic buildings like the Hisar Mosque.

This mosque is from 1598, built right at the end of the 16th century and it’s the oldest Ottoman building that I found in that area.
There was only one person in the mosque when I was there. I like to visit mosques when they are quiet, because at that time they are places of utmost tranquillity.

ŞADIRVANALTI MOSQUE (1637)
The second oldest mosque in the Bazaar Quarter is the Şadırvanaltı Mosque, from 1637.
The problem with most mosques that I visited in Turkey is that it’s almost never possible to take a photo that would show the whole mosque. In Istanbul, that’s possible with some of them, such as the Blue or Fatih Mosque. Usually, the adjacent buildings and narrow streets surrounding the mosques restrict the view.
This is yet another beautiful 17th century religious building.

Again, there was only one person inside and I could explore the mosque in absolute peace.

BAŞDURAK MOSQUE (1652)
One more 17th century mosque in the historic area is the Başdurak Mosque.
You can see this mosque from various points within the market area, but it took a while to find the entrance. That’s because the mosque is right in the middle of the market, surrounded by houses and narrow streets on all sides.

It’s a small and very interesting mosque. You have to go up the flight of stairs to reach the mosque, because it’s above the street level. But from there you can only see roofs of the buildings surrounding the mosque, because it’s not high enough for a good perspective. There was no one inside during my visit.

KIZLARAĞASI HAN (1744)
Kızlarağası Han reminded me of hans that I saw in Bursa. But this one is not as old, although the concept is the same.
You’ll find coffee shops and various other shops inside of this han. It’s very interesting also, in the photo below, you can see the Hisar Mosque, immediately next to it.

The han was built 150 years after the Hisar Mosque, perhaps try to imagine how the area developed with the passing time.

SALEPÇIOĞLU MOSQUE (1905)
The last Ottoman mosque that I want to mention in this post is the early 20th century Salepçioğlu Mosque.
At the time when this mosque was constructed, the Ottoman Empire was nearing its end. But in 1905 the Empire still existed, its demise arrived approximately 20 years later.
Of course, in 1905 no one could predict the forthcoming disappearance of the Ottoman state. The construction of this mosque so late in the Ottoman history testifies that, perhaps, all appeared well at that time.

This mosque is at the edge of the historic Kemeralti area.

You will notice that the interior decoration is radically different from the decoration in mosques constructed in previous centuries.
I didn’t know that it had been built at the beginning of the 20th century when I visited this mosque, although I immediately noticed that it was different.
The mosque has a beautifully decorated dome.

To answer the question at the beginning of this article, we can certainly talk about Ottoman Izmir. The Ottoman heritage, while not as rich as in other Turkish cities, is precious.
Anyone visiting Izmir should make sure to visit Kemeralti and the Bazaar Quarter, because that’s where you can see Ottoman Izmir and where you’ll find historic buildings that I mention in this post.
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