Bey Hamam (Paradise Bathhouse): An iconic Ottoman bath complex

It’s the first public building erected in the city after its definitive conquest by the Ottomans in 1430. According to a dedicatory inscription above its entrance, it was built in 1444 by Sultan Murad II.

It’s a double bathhouse with separate men’s and women’s sections, which extend independently along parallel axes, without communicating with one another. The rooms in each section follow the traditional layout of bathhouses: cold, tepid and hot chambers with separate rooms. Newer interior balconies are preserved in both cold chambers, with individual changing rooms. The interior spaces are crowned by domes of various sizes, bearing circular lighting and ventilation openings.

The decoration of the bathhouse is particularly noteworthy. Relief and embossed plaster decorations, dating back to the monument’s founding in the 15th century, are partially retained on the walls and the base of the domes. Painted decorations from later phases of the monument are also preserved in the cold and warm chambers of the men’s section and the warm chambers of the women’s quarters.

In the 1930s, a building with eclectic features was added to the eastern side of the bathhouse, housing commercial stores.

After the city was incorporated into the Greek state in 1912, the bathhouse passed into private ownership and continued to operate until 1968. The monument was expropriated by the state in 1972.

Bey Hamam finally opened its doors to the public in 2026 after a full restoration, including conservation of the decorative elements, partial restoration of the roof and interiors and the addition of new electrical, mechanical and lighting systems.