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Going to the Turkish baths in our neighborhood was something else… I first went to one of these baths with all the women. It was one of those classic Turkish baths… It had a marble basin and a heated marble platform. The attendants in the baths would wash the women. The most important tradition about these baths was that they provided a place for single women to be displayed for possible arranged marriages. Whenever a single woman was ready for marriage, before her family began looking at potential grooms, she would be taken to these baths. In this way, others would be able to observe the woman in a very detailed manner in order to see whether she had any physical deformities. And of course, everyone in the baths would enjoy various delights of food (dolma, meatballs, quiches (borekitas) etc… while this ‘display’ was underway.
Location
Kadıköy/İstanbul
Türkiye
Interview
Albert Arditi