Tokat
Tourism

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reaches of the Yeilirmak. Since the Middle Ages Tokat has benefited from its situation at the junction of two trade routes: one from Mesopotamia to the Black Sea and the other from Persia, and India (silk!), to Izmir (Smyrna) on the Aegean Sea, from where goods were shipped to Europe. Although several of the town's historic buildings have been destroyed or have disappeared, many still remain and a few have been splendidly restored. Most of the old buildings are located on the two main axes: the north-south through route from Sivas to Amasya by the Meydan (main square, near the Museum) and on the east-west Sulu Sokak either side of Cumhuriyet Meydani (Republic Square near the Town Hall) and further to the east.

Since the 17th century the town's principal trades have included copper beating, batik printing, weaving and silkworm rearing. The textile printers use traditional skills to produce attractive hand-printed linens with patterns based on old motifs. Over 1000 families, mainly in the rural communities of Niksar, AlMus and Cat, make silk and wool carpets under state control using the famous Hereke method. Since 1982 Afghan refugees have been producing wool and silk carpets using traditional patterns from their homeland.

History

Unlike the nearby ancient Commana Pontica (see Gümenek), Tokat developed from the medieval town of Eugocia (Dazimon) after the earlier heathen Hittite settlements declined as Christianity spread. In 1631 there were twelve churches in the town, one of which was said to have been built by Justinian (527-565). After Arab incursions ca. 1071 the region fell to the founder of the Rum Seljuk dynasty, QutulMusch Sultan Süleyman I. In 1074 the castle was captured by the Danishmend Melik Ahmet Gazi. The Ottomans took the town temporarily in 1380 but only gained full control in the late 15th century Before the days of the republic there was a large contingent of Armenian Christians in the town but they were expelled after 1923.