Cem Sultan Bedesteni (Cem Sultan Covered Bazaar - Karanlık Bedesten - Dark Covered Bazaar)

Cem Sultan’s work

Cem Sultan Bedesteni was built in 1469 by the Ottoman prince Cem Sultan. It is located in the area also known as Tellal Pazarı.

The word Bedesten evolved from the word bezzaz-istan and became bedesten. It means a place where cloth is sold. During the Seljuk and Ottoman periods, in all cities where weaving and fabric were produced intensively, there were bedesten, i.e. cloth dealers or textile bazaars, where producers exhibited their goods and sold them wholesale and retail.

The existence of Cem Sultan Bedesteni is important in terms of showing how important a textile production and trade center Kastamonu was during its period. The fact that there are many inns around the Bedesten, which we can think of as businessmen’s accommodation centers, tells us about the intensity and dimensions of textile trade in Kastamonu.