HISTORY OF PHAETON THE BLACKSMITH RESTAURANT
KUNURALP ASLAN was the last craftsman of this historical setting where once phaetons and coaches were manufactured. After the death of Boğos AKSAR Usta in 1963, his grandchild Herman Bey and Kunuralp Aslan became partners. This partnership lasted until Herman Bey assigned the store to Kunur Usta who carried out the business alone after then.
With his unexpected death in March 20, 2006, this profession unfortunately came to an end in Kadıköy. Thousands of coaches were manufactured and restored in this setting for 90 years. And Boğos Usta, master of Kunur Usta, had taught him the finest details of this profession.
As you know, this profession was rather taught by Armenian and Greek craftsmen. I remember Boğos Usta sitting on a chair in from of the store. I had seen him a few times. He was a fatherly man. Those of my age would remember how the street was crowded then.
Ladies and gentlemen, this street was indeed a sector with the Saddlers İbrahim Gürgönül and Turan Örnek, the Feed Sellers Zino and Laki Pavlidis brothers, the Blacksmiths Nuri Usta and Ömer Dönmez, Spare Part Seller Yusuf Hepal who was called with the nickname Arap Hacı Baba, the Other Phaeton craftsman Krikor Balyozyan, and Tile Sellers Quant and Arto Kasaryan.
You would come here and buy all you need. It was a center for the local carriers and even sometimes for carriers from outside the city. I used to compare that store to a paddock where they replace tyres in 5 seconds during Formula – 1 races.
Coaches forming a line would have their tyres with warn iron rims replaced quickly, and would turn to work without paying anything. Those times payments were made later. Relations depended upon mutual trust. No problem would arise.
How about the process of mounting the new rim on the tyre?
When Kunur Usta placed the iron rim which he had heated and expanded in the annealing stove equipped with a bellows on the wheel which he had before fixed to the wheel apparatus on the ground, that noisy operation would start with the sound of the sledgehammer and the crackling of the wood.
Helpers would be called in to extend the sticks which were mounted on the big iron puller which resembled horseshoes, because 3 more people would be required for that process, not to mention Kunur Usta. Otherwise, the cam would expand, and the iron rim would not fit in the wooden wheel.
The process would start when the later Kahraman Kalfa, Aleko Usta who later settled in Greece and other people from around who would come to help.
Kunur Usta would climb on the wheel and hit the wedge with the sledgehammer, and at the same time, a thick fog would cover the atmosphere when the hot iron rim burned the wood.
My uncle’s voice would be heard among the crunching of wood and the sound of hammer, and he would shout at the people who had come to help him;
‘Pull it guys!, ‘’Hold tight!
In the end, the rim would be inserted in the wood, and everybody would look at Kunur Usta with their faces smiling.
He would say, “Come on guys, let’s get seated. “
There always was the son of a coachman to whom Kunur Usta called;
‘’Veysel tell them to bring the teas and coffees!”
Teas and coffees would come, but the fumes of the wood would not disappear yet. Everybody would sup their teas and join a conversation.
Those who used to help him were always happy to help that nice guy. It’s hard to believe, but that help lasted for 60 years. Human relations had a different taste at those days.
When you look at the walls of his historical setting you will notice the handmade tools of Boğos Usta used in Phaeton and Coach production which my valuable friend Mesut Tavrak took pains to clean and maintain, and hanged on the wall.
When you look at them, you can read the historical process of the 120 years. You can think of and dream about the contribution of this sector to national economy and even how those people earned their living and feed for their horses.
We owe these days to those instruments and the people who created them with elbow grease and eye-straining work.
We are happy to preserve the walls of the setting and the historical touch of the instruments, and to render service as Phaeton The Blacksmith Restaurant.
We would also like to extend our acknowledgements to Herman Bey, who had worked here with his grandfather from time to time and who helped us to perpetuate the remembrances of this setting.
For and on behalf of Fayton Restaurant
Dr.Nezih Aslan (Shtrogua)
