Yildiz Porcelain Factory: The Heart of Production in the Palace Garden with Its Establishment and Operation

The period when the industrialization movement intensified in the Ottoman Empire corresponds to the reign of Sultan Abdulhamid II. The best indication that the Sultan attached importance to the modernization of technology and capturing the age should be his having a porcelain factory opened within the garden of his palace. The purpose of the establishment of Yildiz Porcelain Factory was to produce porcelain for the Sultan. During this period, palaces and pavilions were filled up with unique works of art produced at the Yildiz Porcelain Factory, rather than Chinese or Western porcelain. Many unique products of the factory were presented as gifts to state palaces, especially to the ones in Europe. The factory, which began its operations in 1894, was administratively and financially linked to the supervision of Imperial Treasury (Hazine-i Hassa), which managed the income and expenses of the Sultan and his palace during his era. The establishment had a diverse technical staff as well as administrative crew and served as a modern production centre by taking contemporary technology as an example. This article, which aims to explain the organization and operation of the Yildiz Porcelain Factory since its construction, has been written to narrate the history of the institution through archival documents.