Istanbul: Workshops and Turkish Baths

RCAC Building

Chesnuts Roasting

After greeting Lilith and an extremely suffocatingly hot sleep at my hostel, Aga Hammam, I awoke bright and early excited for my first Byzantine Archaeological Symposium being held at the Research Centre for Anatolian Civilizations. After weeks of field work dress it was nice to wear something professional looking, put some effort into my appearance, and of course get out of hiking boots and sport some real SHOES (my other true love). I’m glad I sorted out where the conference was located the day before, I had time to grab breakfast and walk to the RCAC, and was the first of the guests to arrive. This was great because I was able to introduce myself and talk to people one by one as they arrived, which is much less awkward than trying to bum my way into a conversation circle. I had been in contact with the workshop leader, John Haldon from Princeton, and he was quite surprised to find out I was an undergraduate. Most were expecting me to be a graduate student and kept asking me what my research was on… awkward. Everyone was extremely kind and inclusive, and eager to give me study advice and encouragement. I was genuinely impressed at how they tried to incorporate me, a lowly undergrad, into conversations and extended invitations for lunch and dinners. The conference was extremely small, around twenty five people, which gave it an intimate feel and allowed the format to be very conversational. It was really amazing to be included in a workshop with such phenomenal archaeologists and researchers, many of whom I have cited time and time again in my undergraduate essays. Hugh Elton of Trent, who has written on one of my favourite topics, Cilician Churches was there, and Joanita Vroom whose ceramic field guide I have been using as a bible in Cide, among many other well-known archaeologists. It this interesting to see the community that is medieval near eastern academic archaeology, everyone knows everyone through some sort of working connection.

Walking into the research centre was absolutely breathtaking, I thought I had to be in the wrong place because I have never seen such an amazing building for archaeology! You walk into an extremely modern spacious lobby with high vaulted ceilings, modern stylish furniture and glass floor, then you take a glass elevator past two beautiful huge outdoor balconies overlooking the Bosporus until you reach another floor with small lecture rooms and larger theaters. Just beautiful, clearly archaeology has money in it somewhere!

Outside the RCAC balconies

The purpose of the workshop was to bring together those studying the Late Roman to Byzantine periods in Turkey. Primarily, archaeologists who are currently working on active projects, to talk about method and scope issues, as well as provide comparisons and parallels from one regional project to the next. The conference was set around a particular project and site, the ongoing Avkat Survey project in North Central Anatolia, Turkey, and other sites were used as comparisons and additions to the central topics the Avkat group presented. There were representatives of Cadir Hoyuk on the Anatolian Plateau, where my professor Marica Cassis also works, as well as Ephesus, Sagalossos, Amureium, and other Turkish archaeological sites with Byzantine materials.

Among the people I met during the first day of the conference were three prehistory archaeologists from Cadir Hoyuk, who were there to read a paper written by my professor, Dr. Cassis. They knew about me from her and were so wonderful to me. I have been offered a chance to dig with them next summer, and I think it would be an amazing field season. The excavations on their project have been ongoing for many years, and a permanent dig house has been constructed on site. It’s in a remote, conservative inland village, but I have learned that dig atmosphere has much more to do with the people than the surrounding’s, and I could tell that they would be a delight to work for. Hilarious and very kind, making sure my time in Istanbul was going well, and taking me out for lunch. They really made the conference so enjoyable for me! I was completely expecting to sit alone in a corner for the weekend and just listening in on lectures, but I felt very included, and was able to make some great connetions with many prominent names in my field. It was an incredibly worthwhile trip.

Some of the lecture highlights for me was the lecture on Avkat Ceramics, Problems and Perspectives by Joanita Vroom as she identified many of my concerns with dating late Roman an early Byzantine pottery with little diagnostics, and I was also able to recognize some pieces in her collection. It was a great bit of confirmation that I was on the right track with my work in Cide. The presentation on Approaches to Field Survey, which talked about methods used in filed walking and survey models used at Avkat, and how survey style can affect the finds that are found and therefore the data collected and presented. Another standout was the final presentation in Paleo-environmental issues, which although partially went over my unscientific head, was extremely fascinating. It’s amazing both what can be done when it comes to recreating past climates, and how it can be applied to our own historical studies. All in all, this workshop got me really thinking.

Although the workshop took up most of my time in Istanbul I did get to expierence a little bit of the city. I was invited to lunch with John Haldon, Jim Newhard, Hugh Elton and the Cadir Hoyuk group the first day, where I had a very interesting baked meat pastery. The food was not my cup of tea but I was just happy to be eating and talking with such interesting people. The following day myself and the Cadir Hoyuk group returned there for lunch, instead ordering kofte (meat balls and pilaf) along with some amazing appetizers including circassian chicken (chicken and walnut puree) and lentil lofte (soft lentil balls). After each day I did some shopping and exploring the busy streets before supper, the first day of the workshop I retured in the evening for a public archaeology lecture, the second day I spent packing, and having dinner with Lilith before having to go back to Cide.

My final expierence of my mini Istanbul trip was a traditional Turkish Bath called a Hammam. My hostel owned a Hamam bath house and offered discounts to its guests. So myself and Lilith decided to see what all the talk was about. What a unique expirence. We were given plaid cloths to cover ourselves with as we enetered the Hamam, which was heated like a sauna. We were led to small ceramic sinks where we were washed with small silver basins and hot water and the laid on a central heating stone. After a half hour of lying on the stone, the bath woman came again, and began to scrub my body with a hard cloth while singing which ecoed through the domed room. I opened my eyes to see my skin covered in something... which I then realised was my skin which was peeled away. Kind of gross, she rinsed me off and to my horror I realised the tan I worked so hard for was GONE! But my skin has never been so soft or new. Next she proceeded to angrily massage me and yank at my joints. I was really nervous she was going to dislocate something. Finally the bath finished with a fragrant soap towel which she would bubble out and pour on your skin. After the bath we were rinsed with cool water and led into the cool air and given some Turkish tea to comlpete the expierence.... and an expierence it was! Something I am glad I tried, just to say I did... but something I will be perfectly fine never doing again!

Outside the Hammam

Aurora