Bornova Levantine Mansions

From the eighteenth century İzmir's export trade in figs, raisins and cotton was handled largely by Levantine families - British, Dutch, Italian and French merchant houses settled in the city over generations - and by the nineteenth century the wealthiest of them had moved out to Bornova, then a village in the hills, and built mansions with formal gardens, chapels and stables. The Whittall, Paterson, Giraud, Baltazzi and Belhomme houses are the surviving names, in styles from neoclassical to Gothic revival, several with private chapels and one with its own tramway stop. Most were taken over by Ege University or the municipality and now serve as rectorates, faculties and cultural centres, which is why they survive at all. There is no organised trail: you walk the streets of old Bornova and look at gates and facades, with entry depending on whichever institution occupies each house. St Mary Magdalene, the Anglican church of 1857, is still in use.

What you actually see

• The merchant villas - Whittall, Paterson, Giraud and Baltazzi houses.
• The garden walls and gates - the enclosures along the old streets.
• St Mary Magdalene - the 1857 Anglican church.
• The university reuse - faculties occupying the mansions.

When to go

April to June and September to October. Weekdays during working hours if you want any chance of getting inside a university-occupied house.

Honest expectations

Most houses are institutional and interiors are not routinely open - this is largely a walk past gates and facades. There is no signposted route or visitor information. Bornova is a busy modern district.

Nearby

Central İzmir is fifteen minutes by metro; the Kordon and Alsancak are on the waterfront.