Evliya Çelebi describes this place as follows: It is a Muslim neighborhood along a big port by the sea with 800 houses and irem gardens. It is a small town with a mosque, 7 prayer halls, a bathhouse, about 200 shops, bachelors’ houses, one school, one fountain with life-giving waters. Its citizens are all seamen, gardeners, and carpenters. They are all Anatolian. . . . The chestnut and wild pears of its mountains are famous.
Source: Travel Account, 17th century
-Nurhan Atasoy, Seyit Ali Kahraman
Resources:
Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnâmesi: Topkapı Sarayı Bağdat 304 Yazmasının transkripsiyonu (Open in Zotero)
Originally published at: Atasoy, Nurhan, and Seyit Ali Kahraman “Kavak Gardens.” Middle East Gardens Traditions. Dumbarton Oaks, December 1, 2014. https://www.doaks.org/resources/middle-east-garden-traditions/catalogue/C98. Archived at: https://perma.cc/5UDZ-R9BM.
