Kastamonu: An open-air museum

by Ass. Prof. Fatih MÜDERRİSOĞLU

Reasons to visit the province of Kastamonu, north of Ankara, range from seaside resorts to ski slopes and from fresh cooking to ancient remains. Kastamonu city is a living monument to the religious and civil architecture of centuries past, with just as much to offer as its better-promoted neighbour, Safranbolu.

A silent revolution has been taking place amid the stone-and-timber houses in the picturesque narrow valley beneath Kastamonu’s landmark Byzantine castle. In Ottoman and early Republican times, the city was the most significant commercial, religious and administrative centre of its region. Now, after years of stagnation and neglect, a series of restorations and business ventures have put it firmly back “on the map”. Educational facilities are also improving, and business ventures like Kastamonu Holding hold out the hope of a brighter economic future.

The sacred...

Aside from the splendid castle, the buildings that constitute Kastamonu’s most valuable and visible cultural assets date from all stages of the Turkish era. The region was added to the Ottoman territories in 1460 as a result of Sultan Fatih Mehmet’s Black Sea expedition. Among the structures built during this period are the Kadı Nasrullah mosque and bridge, By tradition, anyone who drinks from the monumental fountain in front of the mosque  - still the city’s largest – is sure to visit the city again. The Münire Medrese (theological school), a later addition to the mosque, today serves as a handicrafts bazaar where printed Kastamonu cloth and carved wooden utensils are sold.

Equally attractive is the Yakup Ağa Külliyesi, a complex of religious buildings situated at the foot of the castle. But the most important Muslim site is the Şeyh Şaban-ı Veli Külliyesi, located behind the castle. A minor place of pilgrimage, particularly in the first weekend of May, the site includes the tomb, a mosque, a small graveyard, two residences and a source of holy water.

...and the secular

The Ottoman trade route stretching from Istanbul to Sinop via Gerede, Eskipazar and Safranbolu also passed through Kastamonu. Inns were constructed where local produce such as hemp and garlic was sold. The Bedesten, Aşir Efeni and Yanık inns can be visited today. Numerous fountains, baths and mansion houses also attest to the former wealth and elegance of the city. Among the houses restored as a result of the efforts jointly exerted by the Office of the Governor, the Municipal Provincial Tourism Directorate and a number of non-governmental organizations are the Sirkeli, Konyalı and Topraçılar mansions, all of which have become boutique hotels.

In all, more than 500 structures have been registered as of historical significance. These include houses which belonged to Ottoman Greeks and Armenians. The Liva Paşa Mansion has been converted into a palatial Ethnography Museum.

Republican heroine

Some late Ottoman works speak of the importance attached to Kastamonu. The main government building, the lower floor of which is restored as the City Historical Museum, was designed by the architect Vedat Tek, who later drew the plans for the Republican parliament building in Ankara’s Ulus district. The high school, the İdadi (Revenue Office), the Old Prison (Rıfat Ilgaz Cultural Center) and the Recruiting Office are all to be found in Cumhuriyet Square. Few public spaces in modern Turkey are considered so pleasing to the eye. At the centre stands a monument to Atatürk and another to Şerife Bacı – a patriotic Kastamonu woman assisting the war effort by transporting food and ammunition by two-wheeled ox-cart from the Black Sea port of İnebolu to Ankara.

The further past

An active member of the Union of Historic Cities, Kastamonu also boasts many buildings from the pre-Ottoman periods of the Seljuks and the principalities. Only the door of the Yılanlı Darüşşifa hospital is preserved today, but the tomb of Aşıklı Sultan, the İsmail Bey Külliyesi and the İbn-i Neccar and Atabey mosques can all still be seen, and the Frenkşah Bath has become a tourist attraction.

Over the pre-Ottoman millennia, the region came under the domination of the Gashka, the Hittites, the Phrygians, the Persians, the Kingdom of Pontus, Rome, Byzantium, the Danişmentoğulları, the Anatolian Seljuks, the Çobanoğulları and the Candaroğulları. Some artefacts from these periods are to be found at the Archaeology Museum. There are rock graves in the city itself, and numerous archeological sites and ruins are to be found in the surrounding region, especially the Taşköprü and Tosya districts. In the village of Kasaba, just 15km away from Kastamonu, stands the Mahmut Bey Mosque, dated 1366, renowned throughout Turkey for its wonderful wooden decoration.

Getting an appetite

The green countryside of Kastamonu stretches from the impressive Ilgaz Mountain winter sports centre via plateaus and forests to Black Sea resorts like İnebolu, Abana and - prettiest of all - Cide. The Valla Canyon in the Pınarbaşı district, the Ilgarini Cave and the stud farms at Yarılıgöz and Daday are ideal for the eco-tourist. Nor would any article on the area be complete without some mention of the peculiar local cuisine. The homeland of garlıc and mortar-pounded coffee also specialises in bread-and-meat meals like village pide, Biryan kebab, tirid and etli ekmek baked with pastırma or ground meat. These recipes leave no room for dessert, but the local halva, known as çekme helva, can be purchased as a gift or for later consumption.

(DIPLOMAT  -  October 2005  -  Ankara)