Капалъчаршия — въображаемата и истинската, някога и сега
The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul: Imagined and Real, Then and Now

Summary/Abstract: The aim of the article is not only to present the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul (Kapalı Çarşı), but also to examine its place in the imagination of the Bulgarian and Turkish public. Roofed markets are considered typical of Islamic civilization and urban life. They are perceived as symbols of the traditional culture and values, as opposed to the industrialized and westernized present-day market. In the 1990s the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul was judged in varied ways by the members of Bulgarian intelligentsia. Rather by misunderstanding it was perceived as a market for cheap goods, produced in the Third World. Anti-Turkish stereotypes were the reason for the lack of appreciation of this historical monument. The author presents a brief overview of the history of the Grand Bazaar: the construction of the two bedestens, of the surrounding shops and inns, the transformation of the area into an enormous roofed market. Special attention is paid to the modernization of the Bazaar in the 19th–20th centuries — its rebuilding under Abdul Hamid II, certain technical innovations, changes regarding the goods sold there and the actual recovery of the Bazaar as a tourist attraction. The author aims to demonstrate how simplified the paradigm of the “decline” is. An attempt is made as well to present a more precise and analytical idea of what is “traditional” and what is “new” in the Grand Bazaar today.

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