Hide-a-bed sofa: The effects of transition from nomadic to settled life on Turkish furniture industry

Abstract

The furniture used by Turks started to become widespread during the period of Abdulmecid II with the help of Westernization policies. The most obvious evidence of this situation can be seen in the planning and furniture selection in Dolmabahçe Palace. While the Topkapı Palace represents the nomadic culture in East, Dolmabahçe Palace reflects the Western culture including rococo and baroque. Although the Ottoman space tradition gave way to a life with furniture over time, the people weren’t able to adapt to this change completely. The most crucial reasons of this situation were sitting, eating and resting on the floor, which were the habits originated from the nomadic culture. Hide-a-bed sofa as furniture was accepted by the society because of its familiar to nomadic culture. In this point, the relationship between the concepts of hide-a-bed sofa and nomadism was evaluated within the study.