Turkish Bath (Hamam) Tradition

The Turkish Bath has always been a very important part of the everyday life of Turkish men and women for many centuries. The bath ritual as we know today has its roots in the washing traditions of the Turks that they brought from Central Asia , added to the Byzantine and Roman traditions they adopted in Anatolia. Particularly for women, rich and poor, the Turkish Bath has served as the heart of social life in a restrictive society serving as a women's club. But it was not only an everyday hygienic and social occasion: women celebrated important occasions at the bath such as weddings and births. Ceremonies included the bridal bath, the forty day bath on the 40 th day after baby's birth, holiday bath on the eve of religious holidays, and the guest bath to which the hostess would invite her friends and relatives to meet a special visitor. The baths were also perfect places for a prospective mother-in law to find a suitable bride for her sons, choosing the prettiest and the healthiest looking girl as a potential daughter-in-law as this was a rare opportunity for more intimate observation. Baths for women were also beauty salons where facial, hair and body care was available all day long together with herbal treatment for many conditions and therapy with various oils. A woman's body was beautified and her soul restored at the bath. The perspiring body was rubbed with hand mitts made of silk and linen to cleanse it of all the old skin, and lathered up numerous times to purify it of toxins. For such an important social activity, preparation for the bath was very important. Every woman had typically around 15 different bathing accessories, and for women of means the list could be much longer. Examples of these accessories are today regarded as works of art and can be seen in many Eastern museums.