In Istanbul, after a 13-year restoration, the Zeyrek Cinili Hammam, built in the 16th century, will open. This is not just a bathhouse, but a real work of art: tens of thousands of tiles with 37 unique patterns decorated its walls, making the hammam the most richly decorated in Turkey. This is reported by gazeta.ru with reference to Arkeonews.
The hammam was built by order of the famous corsair Hayreddin Barbarossa and named after the Zeyrek district where it is located. “Chinili” means “covered with tiles” in Turkish.
Unfortunately, in the second half of the 19th century, the hammam was looted, and many of the tiles were sold to collectors from Europe. Now they can be seen in the Louvre, the British Museum and other famous collections.
On May 3, Zeyrek Chinili Hammam will reopen its doors to visitors. Now there will be separate male and female sections.
