Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
TARIH INCELEMELERI DERGISI, cilt.35, sa.1, ss.101-132, 2020 (ESCI)
After the conquest of Istanbul, the Byzantine winehouses, particularly in Galata, continued their activities as in previous years within the framework of privileges (Ahidname) granted to non-Muslims. The winehouses, which have evolved in time, were mainly socializing places offering the customers the opportunity to chat and entertain them with drinks, appetizers and food. However, certain unusual entertainment constituents were used in some winehouses but not in all of them. This study refers to music, dancers and other staff at the winehouses with special qualifications. Music, dance and different kinds of dancers including dancer boys (kocekler) and other ones called tavsanoglani have been studied in many studies from various perspectives. The relationship between the mentioned elements, however, and the entertainment in the winehouses have not been emphasized that much. In this study, dancers such as koceks and tavsanoglanlari, permanent staff and especially the cupbearers (saki) who stand out with their physical beauty and talent, and the musical elements are described as extraordinary tools that add the element of sexuality to the entertainment. Also, it is suggested that the aforementioned elements were employed by the winehouse owners in order to build a permanent customer base for their winehouses. The subject was examined by surveying the Ottoman chronicles, travelogues and the literary works and the observations of the late Ottoman Empire period. The rather secondary nature of the sources instead of the limited number of the archive material arose from the need to depict how the subject was perceived or described in a long a period of time by also stressing its continuity.