At the end of 2019, when we visited the Bodrum Municipality for an issue concerning our foundation, about 12 of us, as friends of the Foundation, went to see the Mayor. Ahmet Aras had just become the mayor. He was very surprised to see us sailors in front of him. "They told me there would only be 2 people, but you’ve brought all the sailors of Bodrum," he said.
Mayor Ahmet listened to us and became very excited when he saw his own house in the book we presented, which shows historical artifacts from Bodrum, Halikarnas, and Knidos dated 1862. He said he would solve our problem fairly and helped us resolve it with minimal damage within 2 months. Thanks to this solution, our foundation was saved from serious harm. We will always remember him with gratitude for his help.
In the meantime, dear Aysun SOKU, knowing my interest in museology, said, "I want you to meet someone in Bodrum." When she mentioned that Bodrum owes a lot to him and his wife, I immediately asked her to arrange a meeting.
After the meeting, I met with him and this is how I got to know Ms. "Zehra Denizaslanı."
After meeting this beautiful person who loves Bodrum, the sea, and boats, I fell even more in love with Bodrum. We toured the museum together, and I listened to her memories. My curiosity grew even more when I learned how the Bodrum Museum was established amidst difficulties and that her husband was the master of all the models in the museum. When she mentioned that her husband could donate his unfinished custom-designed boat to our museum, the story began to unfold.
Our model arrived, was placed in its spot in the museum, and now it was time to tell the story;
The unfinished model of Ali Kemal Kılıçaslan’s last custom-designed boat in our museum.
The story of the first boat built in Bodrum;
Many of us admire the gulets, tirhandils, and aynakıç boats made in Bodrum and happily tell that these were crafted by Turkish boat masters and artisans. But actually, the story of boat building in Bodrum and its surroundings is quite different.
In the promotional booklet of the Bodrum Maritime Museum titled "From Gayıktan to Gulet," the story is briefly narrated as follows:
"The person who initiated boat building in Bodrum is Nami’s Mehmet, who is of Cretan origin. Mehmet wants to make a boat for himself. When he shows it to his father halfway through, his father does not like it. Mehmet, saddened by this, burns the boat.
To learn boat building, Mehmet goes to the Greek island of Kalimnos. But the masters do not pay him any attention. Climbing a cypress tree, Mehmet begins to observe how the Greek masters work. When he returns to Turkey, he builds a new boat and this time he succeeds. One day, Ali Cengiz, who also deals with sponge trade in Bodrum, comes from Güllük and asks him to make a tirhandil. Nami’s Mehmet builds a tirhandil in front of Ali Cengiz’s house in Kumbahçe neighborhood. This boat, named Atilla, measuring 10.5 meters, becomes the first boat built in Bodrum. The year is 1933."
The first boat built in Bodrum: Atilla Boat owner: Ali Cengiz Model: Tirhandil Craftsman: Nami’s Mehmet Model scale: 1/10 Sail rigging: Without a boom Function: Naked diver Engine: None Years in operation: 1933-1955
The person who truly established boat building in Bodrum alongside Nami’s Mehmet is Ziya Güvendiren, who worked on the construction of the Atilla Tirhandil with his brother Ali Kemal. Master Ziya launches the first gulet built in Bodrum, the Mustafa trawler, and then, along with apprentices who will become future masters, he builds boats one after another, especially the tirhandils ordered for sponge diving. He trains almost all the first masters who will shape boat building in Bodrum. For this reason, he is regarded as the father of boat building in Bodrum.
The first gulet built in Bodrum: Boat owners: Mustafa Biraki, Şevket, and İbrahim Nalbantoğlu Year built: 1958 Craftsman: Ziya Güvendiren Model scale: 1/20 Sail rigging: Double foresail / Function: Trawl fishing Engine: 152 Horsepower / Gardner Years in operation: 1958 to present
The first apprentices to leave Master Ziya’s side and quickly establish their own workshops as masters are Mustafa Denizaslanı, Mehmet Özyurt, Erol Ağan, Engin Denizaslanı, Ziya Tümay, and Ali Kemal Denizaslanı.
When the decision was made to create a museum in Bodrum, the originals of the boats that hold significant places in Bodrum's economic, social, and cultural life began to be made by Ali Kemal Denizaslanı.
The museum first opened in October 2010 as part of the Bodrum Yacht Festival, showcasing 18 models of Bodrum-type boats in a tent set up in front of Bodrum Castle.
The project was initiated by the great master-artist Ali Kemal Denizaslanı, who produced Bodrum-type (tirhandil, ayna kıç, gulet, etc.) models entirely handmade in certain scales, remaining true to the real models in his workshop. Due to the interest shown in a short time, with contributions from BODTO and the Bodrum Municipality, it was opened to the public on October 15, 2011, in the two-story Bedesten building located in the town center.
Currently, 49 model boats are on display.
So, who is Ali Kemal Denizaslanı, the one who brings these models to life? (1943-2012) This is an excerpt from Bodrum Güncel published on 29.08.2012. The Master Who Revived Bodrum's Lost Boats.
We lost Master Ali Kemal Denizaslanı, who revived Bodrum's lost boats. We are republishing our interview with him from previous years in his memory. He contributed to Bodrum, worked hard, and poured his heart into it. He fought for Bodrum for years. Rest in peace, Master of Wooden Boats...
Ali Kemal Denizaslanı describes how he started his career as a wooden boat builder at a young age with these words:
"I was sent as an apprentice to Master Ziya Güvendiren when I was 5 years old. Master Ziya played a significant role in training many masters who made a name in wooden boat building in Bodrum. I was with the late Master Ziya from the age I started walking until my military service."
After completing his military service, he established his own business, where he built fishing boats and large yachts for about 30 years. Master Ali Kemal states, "After 30 years, I left the profession, but it never left me." He mentions that his initial goal was just to leave a memory for his children and friends, but the models of Bodrum's wooden boats he has dedicated himself to for 13 years are the product of a significant archive and effort. The models, which draw attention with their flawless details and have received great acclaim, have been exhibited at domestic and international fairs attended by the Bodrum Chamber of Commerce, contributing to the promotion of Bodrum, and have caught the attention of some famous figures. Master Ali Kemal says:
"Those who saw them at fairs started to request them. For example, I made one for Rahmi Koç's private collection. We received requests from abroad as well. We made one for the UK Maritime Museum. Besides that, we made them for Prime Minister Erdoğan and Rıfat Hisarcıklıoğlu. This is how they were promoted."
The intense interest he observed at the fairs encouraged the famous master to decide to revive the boats that once lived in Bodrum's maritime history. He summarizes the story of this decision at the model boat named Cumhuriyet:
"After these fair activities, I went to Crete to research the boats. I entered the maritime museum there, filmed the boats, and when I returned to Bodrum, I duplicated the footage and distributed it to NGOs. I said, let’s come together. This is our shame in Bodrum. There are no 60 boats in Crete, but there are maritime museums. We have 6,500 boats and a history. Let’s establish a maritime museum in Bodrum. I spoke with Mayor Mehmet Kocadon, and he responded positively. Later, I spoke with the Bodrum Chamber of Commerce. I researched these boats for 3.5 years. Where did they come to Bodrum from? Who made them? What roles did they serve? Who owned them? Who worked on the boats? Where did they sink? I researched everything with their dates. An archive emerged. I presented this archive at the Bodrum Chamber of Commerce. We planned to make 20 boats a year. We said it would be a 5-year project. The main sponsor would be the Bodrum Chamber of Commerce. So far, we have completed 50 model boats. I had a larger project in mind. It encompasses transport boats, fishing, mancorna (sponge diving), tourism, and all kinds of boat models. In other words, it covers the boats that have come and gone in Bodrum over the past 100 years. How did boat building in Bodrum come to this point? Who were the first to start? All of this is comprehensively available in my archive. Since we don't even have pictures of some boats, I researched them with the old sailors in Bodrum. Many people I could gather information from are no longer alive. I find elderly people from families who knew the boats. One remembers the color of the boat, another recalls its length or some features, some remember what the boat did and where it sank. This way, I completed 50 boats and we opened the Bodrum Maritime Museum in Bedesten."
Ali Kemal Denizaslanı describes the Bodrum Maritime Museum, where these 50 model boats are exhibited, as a starting point, saying, "The Bodrum Maritime Museum is one-tenth of what I envisioned," and expresses his concerns with these words: "There are still 50 more boats to be made. Where will we exhibit them? There is no space in Bodrum. The Ottoman Shipyard could have been a museum, but it was rented to Aydın Doğan for 49 years, so it didn't happen. We entered Bedesten as a starting point, but when the other 50 boats are completed, where will they be placed? There is no space. And there is no one else to do this. If I go, who will do this? I was recently unwell, underwent surgery, and I am fine now, but if I go, who will take care of this? Who will complete this project? If you try to train someone, who will you train? This is a labor of love. First, you need to love it; then comes the skill and talent. I can continue now because I love it. There is still much to be done.
Turgut Reis's boat will be made for the museum. Sadun Boro's boat will be made, and the Bodrum School Ship will be made. There are 5-6 masters trained by Master Ziya; they have opened shops and trained other apprentices. Each has made a boat that is associated with them, which has become famous in Bodrum. All those gulets will be made and placed in the museum. But how, where, it’s hard to accommodate 50. How will we do the rest?"
Master Ali Kemal complains about the indifference of local authorities. "I took a boat to the Prime Minister, it’s been 4 years. The President of the Bodrum Chamber of Commerce and officials from the Bodrum Municipality were with me. The Prime Minister asked what I wanted. I said I don’t want anything for myself; build a school in Bodrum. He immediately called his undersecretary and introduced him to us. They said, show us a place in Bodrum. We will support you to the fullest. They told us to prepare a file, but they didn’t even prepare that; there is no one to deal with it or take it. Here, everyone is passing the job to each other.
The people of Bodrum visit the museum with tears in their eyes. Their grandfathers are there, their fathers are there. Some don’t have pictures, and they come asking their grandchildren; where is my grandfather? We have lived through these experiences."
In Bodrum Harbor, there is a boat named Deniz Büyücüsü. Master Ali Kemal says this boat is the Turkish Army's first mancorna (diving) boat. As long as his health permits, he is currently trying to complete the model of that boat. "Only the painting is left. There are a lot of details on it; I don’t take any parts from outside. I make everything by hand, even the winch. There is no proper project plan. I derive the plan from photos, what I remember, or what has been told."
When Master Ali Kemal completes his models, he wants to compile an archive into a book that narrates the life stories of the boats that have taken their place in Bodrum's maritime history, detailing where and by whom they were first made, what they carried in which waters, how far they sailed, and where they sank.
The first exhibition he opened at Bodrum Pier with his own means was visited by 50,000 people. There is also considerable interest in his works at the newly opened Bodrum Maritime Museum. As the models of boats that seem to come to life from Bodrum's maritime history attract the attention of local and foreign tourists, they also evoke intense emotions for the people of Bodrum who reunite with the boats that remain in their ancestors' memories.
Source: www.denizhaber.com
Photo: DenizHaber
Photo: DenizHaber
Photo: DenizHaber
Photo: DenizHaber
Photo: DenizHaber
Photo: DenizHaber
Photo: DenizHaber
Photo: DenizHaber
Photo: DenizHaber
Photo: DenizHaber
Photo: DenizHaber