Kapalı Çarşı and Kazancılar Bazaar

The Kapalı Çarşı and Kazancılar (Coppersmiths') Bazaar form the commercial heart of Adana's old town in Seyhan district, a dense network of covered lanes and workshops operating as a market since the 16th century. The Bedesten — the original covered exchange — was constructed between 1531 and 1540 as part of the Ulu Cami complex funded by the Ramazanoğlu dynasty and remains the oldest surviving commercial structure in Adana. Its vaulted stone hall served as the central trading room for cloth and valuables and can still be entered during market hours. Around it, the lanes of the Kazancılar market have specialised in handcrafted copperware for centuries: trays, coffee pots, decorative bowls and the distinctive Adana clay cooking pots (çömlekleri) are still made and sold in small workshops where metalworkers hammer sheet copper by hand. The bazaar is also the birthplace of Adana's most celebrated street food: Liver Sellers' Street (Ciğerciler Çarşısı), tucked into the bazaar quarter, opens from dawn and serves grilled lamb liver seasoned with cumin, red pepper and flat bread — the city's defining dawn meal, unique to Adana. Spice merchants, fabric sellers, tailors and household goods traders fill the surrounding lanes, giving the market a full spectrum of sensory activity at peak hours. Visitors can spend 1 to 1.5 hours exploring the covered Bedesten, the open-air Kazancılar lane and the spice market. The surrounding area is car-free and walkable from the Büyük Saat Kulesi and Ulu Cami, which stand at the bazaar's northern edge.