See photos of the beautiful 300-year-old mansions in Turkey
Going back to the 18th Century, the Ottoman villas of Safranbolu in Turkey are an incredible – and stunning – instance of sustainable architectural layout.
The hundreds of timber-laced villas dotted the village’s quaint alleyways. With gleaming white stone faces, red-gabled ceilings and brown casement windows, they looked directly out of a fairy tale.
Snuggled deep within the Karabuk area of Turkey’s Black Sea province, Safranbolu was an essential caravan stop with the Silk Road, the ancient trading path between China and the West.
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The town was well-known for its burgeoning saffron trade. It became a central Ottoman city in the 18th Century, its cobbled roads chock-full of mosques, hammams and these orthodox Turkish mansions called konaklar (singular, konak).
Today, there are around 2,000 Ottoman-era konaklar in Safranbolu. Many are houses for residents, while others have been converted into boutique hotels, restaurants, eateries and museums.
They are gorgeous, and these konaklar are excellent examples of sustainable architecture and socially reliable building design.
Yet, while their prestige saw the city inscribed on the Unesco World Heritage list in 1994, numerous people outside Turkey must be aware of their presence.
“Safranbolu homes are made to keep you cool in summer and warm in winter,” said owner Özlem Özen, welcoming me to my house for the following two days with a smile.
Safranbolu has an unusual landscape and environment. The Old Town is on the slopes of a deep canyon. Summers are balmy and clear, whereas winters are freezing and icy. Çamlıca Konağı, like many other Safranbolu konaklar, is flawlessly prepared to adjust to these temperature variations.
“Our houses are designed with locally sourced wood and rock that provide exceptional thermal insulation across seasons without harming the atmosphere,” stated Fatih Dökmeci, a local designer who has restored around 100 konaklar in Safranbolu, including Çamlıca Konağı, over the past 20 years.
