Çorum Handicrafts

Alongside weaving (see Kargı Cloth and Alaca Camili Kilim), Çorum is also home to other traditional crafts such as stone carving and instrument-making. This page brings together crafts that, on their own, do not yet have enough documented source material for a dedicated page.

Stone Carving

Stone carving, which reflects Hittite culture, is described by Turkey’s Culture Portal as a souvenir craft unique to Çorum. Stone-carved pieces are sold chiefly in the gift shops of Alacahöyük, Boğazkale and Yazılıkaya; inspired by Hittite iconography — divine figures, reliefs, sphinx motifs — the pieces are typically hand-worked from basalt or serpentine stone. Local press has also covered craftsmen such as Hasan Kaplan, a stone master from Alacahöyük, exhibiting at handicraft fairs outside the province.

Handmade Instrument (Bağlama) Craftsmanship

Interviews conducted with bağlama makers in Çorum’s Osmancık and Kargı districts (“Çorum’un Bağlama Ustaları,” or “Çorum’s Bağlama Masters”) show that this craft still survives in the district’s rural areas. In the city centre, workshops operating since 1999 have carried Çorum instrument-making abroad, sending handmade bağlamas not only across Turkey but to countries such as Germany and Austria.

Why It Matters

These crafts together represent a wide span of Çorum’s artisanal heritage, from its Hittite legacy (stone carving) to the musical culture of its village markets (bağlama). For more on the province’s weaving traditions, see Kargı Cloth and Alaca Camili Kilim; for its coppersmithing tradition, see Çorum Tinsmiths and the Copper Craft.

Sources

• Turkey’s Culture Portal — Stone-Carving Products
• Çorum Haber — A stone master from Alacahöyük brought colour to Çorum’s stand
• YouTube — Çorum’un Bağlama Ustaları 1-2 (interviews with bağlama-making masters in Osmancık and Kargı districts)
• Güvensazevi — Handmade Bağlama Workshop (Çorum)