Re-discovered in Nicosia (North Cyprus) in February 2014, the sign of the Ottoman Bank Nicosia Branch was designed by an orientalist artist Edmund Dulac in 1947. The double sided signs of the city branches in Cyprus were in place until 1963 when conflicts between Turks and Greeks affected the bank’s business enough to cause the closure of the Nicosia branch and the opening of a new venue in the southern region of the city. The discarded sign was rescued from the garbage by a tradesman on the opposite side of the bank in 1974. Stored in the shop until 2014, the bullet-riddled sign will now be on view at SALT Galata from October 2016 for one year.
THE HISTORY OF THE EMBLEM
Designed for the marketing strategies back in the day, the olive tree was chosen as “the sign of peace”. The olive tree which is the symbol of productivity, protection, peace, tenacity and adaptability was preferred as it is a plant native to all countries of the bank “territory” in Eastern Mediterranean countries.
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