3-021-434 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

The Bazaar at Constantinople, 1869. 'Those who have revisited Constantinople, after some years of absence, upon the late occasion of the Eastern tour of the Prince and Princess of Wales, must have been struck with a very general change in the costume and habits of the Turkish people, especially those of the shopkeeping class. Instead of wearing the turban and loose robe, with the venerable beard of an Oriental elder, and squatting cross-legged on the carpet of patience to await the approach of his customers, the modern Turkish merchant in the bazaar of Stamboul [ie Istanbul] is a brisk young fellow, dressed like a Parisian, who stands at his counter, with a smiling face, and calls the attention of passing ladies to his tempting wares for sale, while even chairs are set for their accommodation. The ladies themselves have not yet altered their style of attire, though it is possible that the yashmak, or veil, in the case of some of the younger women, is a shade thinner than it used to be and differently put on...But the dress of Turkish men, except in the lower class, has undergone a great transformation, the fez, instead of a hat, being now their only distinction from Europeans at Constantinople'. From "Illustrated London News", 1869.