Abstract:

Sinop, which has been established since ancient times, is one of the most important port cities. In the center of Sinop, in the area called the Balatlar Building Community, the findings obtained in the excavations carried out under the presidency of Prof. Dr. Gülgün Köroğlu, provide important data in terms of art history. The ceramic findings discovered in the mining of the Sinop Balates Building Community are also remarkable in its diversity, as well as in the characteristics of the powder, shape and pattern. In the caves, from the 14th century to the present day, the Ottoman era ceramics produced and used in a long process have been revealed. Examples of imports from Europe are also in a significant intensity. Some of these examples are similar to the findings of Smyrna (Izmir) Agora. In the imported ceramics found in Sinop, British and French samples are observed in a considerable majority. In addition, it has captured Taches Noires (Black Spot) ceramics, called Albisola ceramics, which are produced in Italy, but we know it is also produced in many cities in Europe. However, the absence of examples of Italian mayolics is a surprising, thoughtful and open to discussion topic. Therefore, the issue that archaeological data of the city states of Geneva and Venice, which have been active in the Black Sea trade since the 13th century, has been discussed and various recommendations have been made. Our study also focused on the assessment of the general characteristics of imported ceramics from Europe found in the Sinop Balats Construction Community mining, as well as on the importance of Sinop within the Black Sea trade network.

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