Kaleiçi and the Historic Market

Denizli's first settlement in the period of the Anatolian Seljuks is present-day Kaleiçi and its surroundings; settlement here is generally accepted to have begun in the 11th century. As the name suggests — Kaleiçi means 'inside the castle' — the area was enclosed by a fortress: a system of walls made up of an inner and an outer castle is known.

Very little of those walls is still standing today. Do not walk Kaleiçi expecting the ruins of a castle — what is preserved here is not a building but the settlement itself: a place of trade that has carried on at the same point for eight hundred years.

The area was used in turn by the Seljuks, the Ladik Principality, the Germiyanoğulları, the İnançoğulları and, later, in the Ottoman period. The centre of the city did not move throughout that time.

In the market, crafts such as goldsmithing, coppersmithing and blacksmithing still go on together with their production — part of what is in the window is made on the same street. Traces of the ahilik tradition among the tradesmen are described in the manner of trading and in relations between neighbours.

Denizli Metropolitan Municipality presents the market as the '800-year-old historic market' and carries out its renewal work within that frame.

No special plan is needed for a visit: the market is in the middle of the city and works for everyday shopping. Since it is not a tourist market, the prices follow accordingly.

That the market is not touristic is an advantage for the visitor: most of what is sold here is what the townspeople themselves need, and the prices follow from that. Anyone looking for a souvenir shops from the same shelves, and will not find a section set aside for them alone.