Sherbet Pitcher from Ottoman-Period

The word sherbet comes from the Arabic word shariba, which means “to drink”. Evliya Çelebi writes in his travel book that he drank poppy sherbet along with pomegranate, apricot and rhubarb sherbet in Bitlis. We wonder if the sherbet bowls Evliya Çelebi drank from were similar to this sherbet pitcher or not?

Sherbet and sherbet making were among the most important elements of Ottoman Empire cuisine culture. Aside from serving along with food, cinnamon sherbet, served hot, was the most popular drink in the winter, and grape and honey sherbet in the summer. And offering pomegranate sherbet was considered as a polite gesture.

What you see in this photo is a very old long-time used traditional sherbet pitcher with a crescent and a star detail. It was carried by local street vendors by strapping it to their body, selling sherbet.

What a fantastic design, isn’t it? Its curves are fascinating. It makes you wonder which kinds of delicious sherbet were poured from its nozzle over the years. Liquorice? Cinnamon? Apricot or honey?

Wish we could drink them now, but from this historical pitcher if possible. Let’s see what sherbet is capable of with a true story from our history: Suleiman the Magnificent got thirsty while visiting the Janissary troops on a hot summer day. He was offered a bowl of cold sherbet. “I have never drunk such a tasty sherbet even in my palace!” he said, before filling the empty bowl with gold and giving it back.