Istanbul's Secondhand Bookstore Tradition Lives On
If you walk downhill through the narrow side streets branching off Istanbul’s famous İstiklal Avenue, you will find yourself in Tophane, a neighborhood along the city’s iconic strait.
Preserving a Literary Legacy
Inside one of its old arcades is a quaint secondhand bookstore, where, every weekend, auctions take place for volumes both foreign and Turkish, along with an eclectic mix of other items — posters, CDs, vinyl records, and more.
From Traditional to Online Bidding
Book auctions have been common practice for decades at Istanbul’s secondhand shops, known in Turkish as “sahafs.” But actual congregations like these have become harder to find in recent years, since many establishments have carried bidding online since the Covid outbreak.
Keeping the Tradition Alive
According to the owner of this sahaf, Burak Bilgiç, bringing people together is essential to keeping the traditional auctions, or “mezats,” alive.
A Social Space for Book Lovers
“This is a social space,” Bilgiç says. “People don’t come here to shop,” so much as to relax, talk about books, and connect with each other in a welcoming atmosphere.
