City of Safranbolu

Safranbolu is a town in a valley in northern Turkey, about 200 km north of Ankara. Rock-cut tombs and a Roman temple nearby show that people lived here from prehistory. The present town grew up as a trading centre after the Turkish conquest in the 11th century, and in the 13th century it became an important caravan station on the main east–west route. The Old Mosque, the Old Bath and the Süleyman Pasha Medrese were all built in 1322. The name comes from saffron and the Greek word polis, city.

The caravan trade peaked in the 17th century, when the central market was enlarged to serve travellers rather than townspeople. The Cinci Inn with its 60 guest rooms (1640–48), the Köprülü Mosque (1661) and the Izzet Pasha Mosque (1796) date from these prosperous years. In the 19th century wealthy residents paid for 18 fountains and a hospital, and the town grew quickly. The market quarter of Çukur, Kıranköy, once the non-Muslim district, and Bağlar, where summer houses stand among vineyards, each keep their own character.

Changes in trade and the coming of the railways ended this long prosperity in the early 20th century. When steelworks opened at nearby Karabük, residents who went to work there kept their old homes, and so the townscape survived. The historic quarters became a conservation area in 1976, a decree of 1985 protected 810 houses, and the town was inscribed in 1994.