These shoes have distinctive twin splayed feet and are decorated with birds resting in bushes and floral patterns in mother-of-pearl inlay. Known as naln, shoes like this were used at the hammam, the traditional Turkish bath. Although bathers are generally nude in most parts of the hammam, clothing is necessary in the common areas outside of the wet rooms. Platform shoes are some of the more distinctive objects associated with the baths. Naln are generally made of hard woods, such as ebony or boxwood, but rarer examples from the Ottoman period (13th – early 20th century) include decoration in mother-of-pearl inlay, sometimes with silver wire outlines. Hammam shoes were used in Turkish baths in large cities such as Istanbul and Izmir well into the 20th century. Such intricate shoes relayed the social status of the wearer. They had a practical function as well; the high soles of the shoes prevented the wearer from getting their feet wet. They are known by various local names; undecorated bath shoes made in central Anatolia are sometimes called takunya.
