Art of Wrought Copper in Turkey

Among the handicraft, art of being a coppersmith has been occurred intensively in the past. The fast developing socio-economic structure diminished the value and the place of the copper vessels. Heavy and beautiful vessels made by beating left their places to thin, light aluminum, plastic, glass and steel vessels made by machinery. The demand for copper is diminished. Therefore being a coppersmith has become less and less important every day. However, in the last few years, copper vessels becoming a touristic souvenir became a source of hope for the traditional coppersmith art to live on. Copperworking is applied in our country in some regions and there are people who live off it. Souvenirs, daily used vessels, and requirements of the rural areas are produced in centers such as İstanbul, Ankara, Tokat, Çorum, Erzincan, Diyarbakır, Kahramanmaraş, Gaziantep, Bursa, Kastamonu, Çankırı, Giresun and Trabzon. The situation of being a coppersmith in Turkey is explained, examples are given from souvenir copper items produced in Ankara, and suggestions are made to keep this craft alive.