History under the hammer at Istanbul’s ‘sahafs’

If you walk downhill through the narrow side streets branching off Istanbul's famous İstiklal Avenue, you will find yourself in Tophane, a neighborhood along the city's iconic strait.

Inside one of its old arcades is a quaint secondhand bookstore, where, every weekend, auctions take place for volumes both foreign and Turkish, along with an eclectic mix of other items — posters, CDs, vinyl records, and more.

Book auctions have been common practice for decades at Istanbul's secondhand shops, known in Turkish as "sahafs." But actual congregations like these have become harder to find in recent years, since many establishments have carried bidding online since the Covid outbreak.

According to the owner of this sahaf, Burak Bilgiç, bringing people together is essential to keeping the traditional auctions, or "mezats," alive.

"This is a social space," Bilgiç says. "People don't come here to shop," so much as to relax, talk about books, and connect with each other in a welcoming atmosphere.

Sahafs can be traced back to the early years of the Ottoman Empire, during which Istanbul served as the capital for over 450 years. It was particularly in the 15th century that the city's Grand Bazaar became a central hub for commerce, including book trading.

A short walk away, the Beyazıt area has long been a focal point for Turkish literary culture.

These early bookshops were established by scholars and scribes, offering handwritten manuscripts and religious texts at a time when printed books were scarce.

By the 17th century, sahafs had become lively centers for auctions where rare books, historical documents, and ephemera — items like pamphlets, posters, and other printed materials not originally intended to last — were...