Porcelain and Glassware at the Topkapı Palace Kitchens

The seminar titled: “The Serving Platters and Utensils Used in Ottoman Palace Kitchens II: Istanbul Glass and Porcelain, European Porcelain" presented by Mr. Ömür Tufan, took place at YESAM in the month of November. Mr. Tufan is an expert on the matter and has been working at the Topkapı Palace kitchens for the past 17 years. Mr. Tufan started the seminar with a brief explanation of the palace kitchens and continued to explain all the different types of porcelain and glassware used in the kitchens.

“Ottoman Empire’s Topkapı Palace kitchens were an institution that worked for 24 hours and approximately fed about 5000 people daily. It is an important symbol of the palace that was clearly visible from the Bosphorus and also from the Anatolian (Asian) side of Istanbul.

Porcelain at first was an important product for the Ottomans and was considered to be very precious hence the name “white gold” that was given to it --- evidence of its importance and value. Porcelain was only used by the Sultans and the higher ranking officials, and during the times that porcelain wares were not in use, they were kept in the same treasury as the gold and jewelry. It is possible to visit the kitchen sections of the palace and see all the different types of porcelain that was imported or gifted from China, Vietnam, Japan, Germany, France, Vienna, Hungary, Poland, and Russia. The Ottoman porcelain was first produced towards the end of 1800’s with the initiation of Adbülhamit, 2nd.

As the use of porcelain increased, Ottomans slowly started to abandon their traditional ways and became modernized.   However, glass production in the Ottomans started much earlier than porcelain. At first, the glassware included small things like glass scent bottles, but in the times of Selim 3rd, the glass production started to include products more suitable for use at the dining tables.”

At the end of the seminar, Mr. Tufan spoke about “aşure” pitchers, which are genuinely designed by Ottomans. This was a nice touch considering that this year the popular “aşure” making period coincides with this month.

 5 November 2015 

The lecture video is in Turkish.