Artisans of Empire: Crafts and Craftspeople Under the Ottomans

by Suraiya Faroqhi

The manufacture and trade in crafted goods and the men and women who were involved in this industry--including metalworkers, ceramicists, silk weavers, fez-makers, blacksmiths and even barbers--lay at the social as well as the economic heart of the Ottoman empire. This comprehensive history by leading Ottoman historian Suraiya Faroqhi presents the definitive view of the subject, from the production and distribution of different craft objects to their use and enjoyment within the community. Succinct yet comprehensive, Artisans of Empire analyzes the production and trade of crafts from the beginning of the sixteenth century to the early twentieth century, focusing on its history, politics and culture. Production methods, the organization of trade guilds, religious differences, the contribution of women and the structure of the Ottoman economy all come under scrutiny in this wide-ranging history that combines keen analysis with descriptions of the beautiful and sometimes unknown works of Ottoman artisans. Faroqhi sheds new light on all aspects of artisan life, setting the concerns of individual craftsmen within the context of the broader cultural themes that connect them to the wider world. Combining social, cultural, economic, religious and historiographical insights, this will be the authoritative work on Ottoman artisans and guilds for many years to come.

Genres: History

272 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Suraiya Faroqhi was born in Berlin to a German mother and Indian father in 1941. She studied at Hamburg University and she came to Istanbul through a university exchange program when she was 21. At Istanbul University, she became a student of Ömer Lütfi Barkan. She completed her master's degree in Hamburg and between 1968-1970 she studied English Language Teaching at Indiana University-Bloomington. After her post-doctorate, she worked as English Lecturer at METU. She retired from METU in 1987 and from München Ludwig Maximillan Universität in 2005.

A turning point in her life came in 1962-63, when she took the opportunity to go to Istanbul University on a fellowship as an exchange student. Subsequently she became a student of Ömer Lüfti Barkan, one of the founding fathers of Ottoman history and an editor of Annales. When she first read Fernand Braudel at Barkan’s insistence, she “had the feeling that’s the sort of thing I wanted to do.” She wrote her doctoral thesis at Hamburg on a set of documents that a late 16th-century vizier submitted to his sultan discussing Ottoman politics at the time.[1]

She is regarded as one of the most important economic and social historians of the Ottoman Empire working today. Professor Faroqhi has written substantially on Ottoman urban history, arts and crafts, and on the hitherto underrepresented world of the ordinary people in the empire. She is well known for her distinctive approach to Ottoman everyday life and public culture. She has published numerous books and articles in the field of pre- modern Ottoman history.

Reviews

[Bongobongo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clear, concise, to the point. Excellent overview of the subject, excellent presentation of sources, of previous writings on the subject. I think I would have enjoyed this book a lot more if it hadn't been required reading for a seminar. Still, it was not difficult to read precisely because of how well-written it is.

[Vika Gardner · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an overview of guild development and activity in the Ottoman empire, with a particular focus on Istanbul, Cairo, Bursa, and Aleppo. As an overview, one might imagine that it would be appropriate for undergraduates, but students reading this book would need to already have a strong sense of Ottoman political history in order to keep straight the shifts in time and place as the narrative moves forward.

Dr. Faroqhi's writing is clear and crisp, making this a wonderful book for European historians or graduate students who want to compare Ottoman experience to Europe's, or for advanced undergraduates or beginning graduate students who want a sense of what has been accomplished in the field to date.