Abstract
The settlements of Istanbul started with a colony in 7th century BC, continued with becoming a 'World city' in the 4th century BC and still go on by being a global metropolis. During the 20th century; the outwards of the urban space were structured by the addition of new big scaled layers over privatized public lands or gecekondu areas rapidly. In the same time, the inner old settlement areas were structured by the slow articulation of fragmental layers over each other in long time periods. This multi-component/straticulate urban structure of the city, which allows and inspires various researches, is handled by the term 'palimpsest' in some contemporary studies. Kocamustafapasa Neighborhood of Fatih County reflects the city's palimpsest character by enclosing the old urban processes' spatial and socio-cultural traces and functions as a temporal cross section for the citizens. In this study, Istanbul's palimpsest character's reflection over the urban space is scrutinized through a 25 years serving shop in Kocamustafapaşa: Neco Cornet Ice Cream. In the first section, Kocamustafapasa's history and current state is presented. In the second section; the development of ice cream sector in Turkey is assessed. In the third and fourth sections; the data obtained from the case study is presented and the sectorial position of the case study subject is evaluated. In conclusion, the findings about the structural qualities of the small scaled urban retail shops, Istanbul's palimpsest character are presented and potential contribution of similar researches to urban studies is emphasized.
