Situated at the foot of the 2,275m/7,466ft-high Akdag on the southern edge of the Isparta basin, the provincial capital of Isparta (pop. 120,000) is famous for its carpets, still sold at a big daily market - though few can nowadays claim to be hand made. The town is also noted for its attar of roses; the small ovens for extracting the rose-oil
are a common sight in the countryside around. Süleiman Demirel, a former Turkish Prime Minister, was born in Isparta. Nearby Akdag shows signs of former glaciation.
Isparta was probably founded by Greeks from Sparta and Greeks continued to inhabit it until 1920. A number of ruined Greek churches can still be seen. The town has been a bishopric ever since the Council of Nicaea (Iznik). Once known as Baris, which is the name Ptolemy uses for it, the town came to be called Isparta only in the 14th century when it was the seat of the Seljuk princes of Hamit. The completely ruined fort almost certainly dates from this time. Described in about 1648 as large and beautiful, by 1706 Isparta had degenerated into a small, unfortified place with miserable houses. In 1889 it was very badly damaged by a violent earthquake.
A number of Isparta's mosques boast 16th and 17th century tiles; old silver utensils can be seen in some of its churches. The Firdevs Camii is attributed to the Ottoman architect Sinan. The Halil Hamit Pasa Kütüphanesi has a collection of some 14,000 books, amassed in the 18th century by the library's founder, the Grand Vizier Halil Hamit Pasa after whom it is named. There are also seven old caravanserais in the town dating from the Ottoman period. The museum has an unrivaled collection of coins, as well as fragments of reliefs from sites in the area. There is also a delightful exhibition of local craftwork.
Print this page
Add to Favorites
