BY Safir Kaylan | August 23, 2010

 hamam accessories

The customs of cleansing, purification, relaxation and renewal have a long history. The bathhouse tradition, which originated in Central Asia, was later incorporated into Anatolian culture, creating a synthesis called the hamam. It is similar to the sauna, but instead of just steam, the approach of the hamam utilizes a bath of hot water followed by splashes of tepid water and finally a cool-down period. The process is similar to ancient Greco-Roman bathing practices in that it has interconnected rooms; in the Greco-Roman tradition, bathers started from the caldarium, or hot room, and then moved to the tepidarium, or warm room, and finally finished their journey in the frigiderium, or the cold room.

During this ritual, more than a dozen traditional bathing accessories are used. This large number indicates that in the past, bathing culture was a rich social tradition. Those hand made accessories include: bathing bowls of copper, silver, and bronze decorated with reliefs and inlays; rubbing mits (kese) woven out plant or hair fiber that are used to exfoliate and scrub the dead skin cells and impurities; bath towels (peshtemal) made of 100% cotton in varied colorful striped or plaid designs adorned with hand tied fringes and embroidery; wooden bath clog (nalın) or pattens that are carved out of hornbeam, boxwood, ebony or softer woods like poplar and decorated using various techniques and materials such as mother-of-pearl, silver, mirrors, corals and embroidery.

Before the 17th century, wooden bath clogs were simple and utilitarian. They were not ostentatious and were only intended to be a practical item. In the 17th century, we learn from the illustrations of hamams by European artists and travelers that the clogs were becoming more decorated with finishes like painted wood, silver ornamentation, and leather straps with metal thread embroidery. Examples of the application of mother of pearl inlays can be found throughout the 18th century. The flat, milky white pieces of mother of pearl inserted into dark woods created a nice contrast of tones. There is also another method of applying silver and brass wires which requires an initial design layout over the wood using cut-outs and then inserting the silver wires with the help of a small hammer. The wires are then glued in and dried, and the requisite finishing work of sandpapering and waxing, is completed. This technique is also used for furniture and jewelry and is referred to as telkari.

Unfortunately, the wooden clogs of today are not as widely used. The craftsmanship needed to create an object of this artistic calibre is disappearing. Wooden clogs are bought mostly for decoration, as souvenirs by tourists, or by girls engaged to be married for their trousseaus.