Through the Markets and Bazaars - Strolling Through Istanbul: The Classic Guide to the City - page 154

century, during the reign of Sultan Ahmet III, the booksellers set up
shop here too, moving from their old quarters inside the Covered
Bazaar. In the second half of the eighteenth century, with the
legalization of printing in the Ottoman Empire, the booksellers greatly
increased their trade and came to dominate the market, which from
that time on came to be named after them. During the nineteenth and
early twentieth century, the Sahaflar Çarşısı was one of the principal
centres in the Ottoman Empire for the sale and distribution of books.
In the past half-century, however, the establishment of public libraries
and modern bookshops has diminished its importance and it now
lives on in honourable old age as a market for secondhand books. It
is one of the most picturesque spots in Stamboul; a pleasant, vine-
covered, sun-dappled courtyard lined with tome-crammed shops,
with stalls and barrows outside piled high with a veritable literary
necropolis. The guild of the booksellers in this market is one of the
oldest in Istanbul; its origins, like those of many other guilds in the
city, go back to the days of Byzantium. In the centre of the square
there is a modern bust of Ibrahim Müteferrika, who in 1732 began
to print the first works in Turkish.
We pass through the Sahaflar Çarşısı and leave at the other end
through an ancient stone portal, Hakkaklar Kapısı, the Gate of the
Engrayers. We then turn right, and a few steps farther on we find on
our left one of the entrances to the famous Kapalı Çarşı, the Covered
Bazaar.
KAPALI ÇARŞI (COVERED BAZAAR)
Most foreigners, and indeed most Stamboullus, find the Covered
Bazaar one of the most fascinating and irresistible attractions of
Istanbul. No directions need be given for a stroll through the Bazaar,
for it is a labyrinth in which one takes delight in getting lost and
finding one's way out, after who knows how many purchases and
other adventures. As can be seen from the plan, it is a fairly regular
structure - which makes it even more maze-like and confusing in
practice. It is a small city in itself: according to a survey made in 1880
the Bazaar contained at that time 4,399 shops, 2,195 ateliers, 497
stalls, 12 storehouses, 18 fountains, 12 mescits or small mosques, as