Rediscovering the 19th Century of a Port Town in Levant: Smyrna/Izmir

Till 16th century, the city of Izmir that located around a sheltered bay surrounded by rivers, valleys and mountains was a small town with an economy based on farming activities. In the 17th century, in accordance with the large trade volume of the Mediterranean era, the city had become an important port not only in Ottoman lands but also in the east Mediterranean. As a result of its importance for the region and for the commerce network, the city attracted attention of travellers from the 16th century with an increasing frequency in the 17th century. The travellers who visited the city had shared their experiences related to the geography, topography, economy and socio-cultural life of Izmir through their notes, paintings and the photographs. In this context, this paper aims to rediscover the city of Izmir through the experiences of the travellers. As the data related to the 19th century of the city is much more varied such as travel notes, engravings, maps and photographs, the study focuses on the 19th century. With the aim of rediscovering the culture-space relations of the city through the observations and expressions of the travellers, the physical and socio-cultural formation of the city will be examined while the differential perceptions and comments will be evaluated through a comparative study.