Ottoman Book Painting

Autonomous Ottoman architectural and visual idioms evolved as they drew inspiration from miscellaneous foreign models which arose predominantly out of the Persianate Timurid-Turkmen and Byzantine traditions. Understanding the form and manner of the appropriation of Byzantine models into Ottoman pictorial representation of architecture contributes significantly to our comprehension of the intricate processes that shaped Ottoman book painting in the periods of its formation and greatest splendor. The Byzantine models appropriated by Ottoman painters were both pictorial and architectural. Mosaics and frescoes were easily accessible in the interiors of several former Byzantine churches converted into mosques. These converted structures, primarily in the region of Kostantiniyye (Istanbul), likewise enabled direct experience of Byzantine architecture and its decoration as they were incorporated into Ottoman actuality.

In: Symposia Iranica, Pembroke College, University of Cambridge, 11–12 April 2017, Cambridge. 2017.
The pictorial representation of architectural structures fundamentally shaped the aesthetics of a great many Persianate and Ottoman book illustrations. Facilitated by a cultural, literal and architectural connectivity, acquisitions of Persianate manuscripts and the mobility of Persian painters into the Ottoman court workshop, the formative period of Ottoman book painting was marked by an inspiration from the Persianate idiom and style. This paper will demonstrate, using selected examples, how the compositional layout of the buildings and settings portrayed, their architectural form and elements, the decorative repertoire in the revetment of the façades and dados, and the visual means of their pictorial representation, evidence continuity in a considerable number of early Ottoman book illustrations. An 'autonomous' Ottoman approach developed in the second half of the 16th century and some of these Persianate models vanished. However, many were emulated and appropriated, eventually undergoing gradual alterations over the course of time, but remaining as a long-lasting vestige of the Persianate actuality in Ottoman book painting.

The pictorial representation of architectural structures and elements shaped essentially the form and the aesthetics of Ottoman book painting and played a key role in both its early development (1490's-1550's) and in the so called “classical” style achieved during its main florescence (1550's-1600's). The paper addresses the forms and manners of the appropriation of Persianate, Byzantine and European – both pictorial and real architectural – models within the Ottoman visual representation of architecture. It considers the mutual interaction of these heterogeneous foreign idioms, while exploring the advance towards an autonomous Ottoman conception of architectural representation. Using the unique and understudied case of the pictorial representation of architecture, the paper illustrates the intricate historical reality of the trans-cultural and cross-field artistic exchange within which Ottoman book painting evolved.

Öz
Bu makale Osmanlı saray tarihçisi Tâlikîzâde Mehmed Suphi’nin kaleme aldığı Firâsetnâme isimli eserin minyatürlü bir nüshasını konu edinmektedir. Bu yazma eser bugün Fransa Milli Kütüphanesi’nde (Bibliotheque Nationale de France PBNF Supplement Turc. Nr. 1055) muhafaza
edilmektedir. Eser ilmü’l-firâset adı verilen ve kısaca aklî delil, tecrübe ve kıyas yolu ile insanın fiziki özelliklerinden hareket ederek onun huy ve ahlakının bilinmesi manasına gelen ilim dalı hakkındadır. Tâlikîzâde eserini Sultan III. Murad’a (1574-1595) sunmuştur.
Üzerinde tarih kaydı taşımayan Firâsetnâme nüshasında hepsi aynı
sanatçının elinden çıkmış beş minyatür bulunmaktadır. Minyatürlerin üslubu Nakkaş Hasan’ın üslubuna çok benzemektedir. Minyatürler yine Tâlikîzâde’nin kaleme aldığı ve Nakkaş Hasan’ın resimlediği Eğri
Fetihnâmesi [TSMK H. 1609], Şehnâme-i Hümâyûn [TİEM 1965] ve
Şemâilnâme-i Âl-i Osmân’da [TSMK A. 3592] yer alan minyatürler ile üslup
açısından benzerdir. Firâsetnâme de Nakkaş Hasan ve tarihçi Tâlikîzâde işbirliği ile üretilmiş olmalıdır. Eserin son sayfasında yer alan III. Murad’ı işaret eden ithaf ve üslup benzerlikleri yazma eserin resimlerinin 1585 ve 1595
yılları arasında yapıldığını düşündürür.
Bu makalede, resim-metin ilişkisinden hareketle Firâsetnâme minyatürlerinin ikonografik özellikleri tespit edilmeye çalışılmıştır. Resimlerin
konularına bakıldığında, firâset ilminin teorik boyutunu bir hikâye üzerinden anlatan temaların özellikle seçildiği anlaşılmaktadır. Büyük İskender ve
Filozof Aristoteles’in betimlendiği minyatürler sâdece Osmanlı sanatı değil, İslam resminde ikonografya açısından da ender örnekleri temsil etmektedir. Firâsetnâme’de yer alan tüm minyatürler Osmanlı resminde bu türe
ait ikonografyanın orijinal ve nâdir örnekleridir.
Anahtar Sözcükler: Osmanlı Minyatürü, İkonografya, Nakkaş Hasan, Resimli Osmanlı Firâsetnâmesi, Tâlikîzâde Mehmed

Starting in the fifteenth century, images of the enthronement of Solomon and the Queen of
Sheba often appear in paintings in manuscripts from Persianate realms. These images draw upon the
Qurʾan and ancillary legends, but they developed quite separately from the textual impulse. This contribution
argues that the sophisticated interplay between words and images gave rise to an “opening”
picture in manuscripts in which the text of the Manṭiq al-Ṭayr is found. In this context, the images function
as an allegory for the mystical journey to God that is described in this text. They contributed much
to the development of an iconography that would henceforth be widely adopted, given a new affiliation,
and often altered for use in manuscripts of different and varied content.

TR
İslam yazınında biyografik metinler için "tezkire" terimi kullanılmaktadır. Tezkirecilik, tarih biliminin bir kolu olarak ortaya çıkan ve temeli Hz. Muhammed'in hadislerinin derlenmesi geleneğine dayanan bir edebî tür olarak dokuzuncu yüzyıldan itibaren ilgi görmüştür. Arap, İran, Osmanlı dünyasında, çeşitli meslek dallarında ün kazanan kişilerin hayat hikâyelerinin bir araya getirildiği bu eserler arasında en çok rağbet edilenler şair, evliya, sanatçı tezkireleridir. Metinleri kendi içlerinde birtakım farklılıklar göstermekle birlikte, kişilerin doğum yerleri, biliniyorsa doğum tarihleri, soyları, aldıkları eğitimler, görevleri, varsa eserleri, eserlerinden örnekler ve ölüm tarihleri tezkirelerde mevcut olan ortak bilgilerdir. Günümüze ulaşan tezkirelerin çok azı, üretildiği bölgedeki dönem üslubunu yansıtan resimlerle zenginleştirilmiş ve bu tezkirelerdeki hâl tercümesinde sözel ifadelerle tanıtılan kişinin, görsel imgeye dönüşmesi sağlanmıştır. Resimli tezkireler ile ilgili bu araştırmada, İslam dünyasında-Müslüman Hindistan örnekleri hariç-dokuz ayrı tezkirenin musavver nüshalarının hazırlandığı tespit edilmiş; bunlardan Mecâlisü'l-'Uşşâk adlı eserin ise on sekiz farklı resimli kopyası saptanmıştır. En erkeni on beşinci yüzyılın ilk yarısına tarihlendirilen resimli tezkirelerin İran ve Osmanlı örnekleri arasında üslup açısından önemli farklılıklar görülmektedir. İran coğrafyasında hazırlanan eserlerdeki tasvirler, hâl tercümesinde yer alan bir hikâyenin görselleştirilmesi şeklinde iken, Osmanlı örneklerinde kişilerin imgeleri portre niteliği taşımaktadır. Resimli ve resimsiz tezkirelerin sayısının on altıncı yüzyılın son çeyreğinde artması ise dikkati çeken bir bulgu olarak ortaya koyulmuştur.

***
EN
In Islamic literature, the term "tazkira" is used for biographical texts. Tazkira writing emerged as a branch of history starting from the ninth century, based on the tradition of compiling the hadith of Prophet Muhammad. Among the most popular tazkiras are the biographies of poets, sufis, and artists in the Arabic, Iranian and Ottoman realm. Although the texts of tazkiras differ from each other, the birth places (and the dates if known), descendants, personal education, jobs, examples from their works, and the dates of their death are common information in the biographies of individuals. Only very few of the extant biographical writings were enriched with paintings, reflecting the style of the period in the region where they were produced. In this study on illustrated tazkiras in the Islamic world -except the examples from Muslim India- nine different works were determined with paintings where eighteen illustrated copies of a single work entitled Majalis al-‘Ushshaq are identified. In terms of style, there are significant differences between the Iranian and Ottoman examples of which the earliest work dating the first half of the fifteenth century. While the depictions in the tazkiras prepared in the Iranian geography are the narrative visualizations of a story in the entry; the depictions of the people in the Ottoman examples bear a portrait character. The increase in the number of both illustrated and unillustrated tazkiras in the last quarter of the sixteenth century is also discovered as a remarkable finding.

The 1720 Imperial Circumcision Celebrations in Istanbul offers the first holistic examination of an Ottoman public festival through an in-depth inquiry into different components of the 1720 event. Through a critical and combined analysis of the hitherto unknown archival sources along with the textual and pictorial narratives on the topic, the book vividly illustrates the festival’s organizational details and preparations, its complex rites (related to consumption, exchange, competition), and its representation in court-commissioned illustrated festival books (sūrnāmes).
To analyze all these phases in a holistic manner, the book employs an interdisciplinary approach by using the methodological tools of history, art history, and performance studies and thus, provides a new methodological and conceptual framework for the study of Ottoman celebrations.

Often known as Nev'îzâde 'Atâ'-î (d. 1045-6/1635-6), 'Atâ-âllâh bin Yahya was an Ottoman judge, poet, and writer of the seventeenth century. Among his works are the continuation of Tashkoprîzâde's "Shakâyik al-nu'mâniyye" ("Red Peony"), a "Diwân" and a "Khamsa", a collection of five "masnawi"s. The five masnawis of 'Atâ'-î's Khamsa are "Sâkinâma" or "Alemnumâ" (Cup-Bearer Book), "Nafhat al-Azhâr" (Breath of Flowers), "Suhbât al-Abkâr" (Converse of Virgins), "Haft Khwan" (Seven Courses) and "Hilyat al-Afkâr" (Ornament of Thoughts). 'Atâ'-î's "Khamsa" has many copies in the libraries and collections displaying the popularity of the work. It was also frequently illustrated in the first half of the eighteenth century. There are five known illustrated "Khamsa" of 'Atâ'-î, the earliest being the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum copy dated 1691 (no: 1969) which has ten illustrations all integrated in the mid-eighteenth century except for one. Another copy is at The Walter's Art Museum in Baltimore dated 1721 with thirty-eight illustrations (W. 666). The Topkapı Palace Museum Library copy is dated 1728 and has forty-three illustrations (R. 816). This copy has three masnawis out of five. London British Library copy (Or. 13882) is dated 1738-9 and has thirty illustrations. The fifth copy at the Free Library of Philadelphia (O. 97) is undated with eighteen illustrations, four of which are by a different hand and probably inserted at a later time. The Philadelphia "Khamsa" is an incomplete copy including three masnawis ("Suhbât al-Abkâr", "Sâkinâma", and "Nafhat al-Azhâr" respectively), which might be an indicator of being contemporary with the Topkapı copy or took it as a model. In the first masnawi, there are four illustrations, one of which is a later addition. The second masnawi has only one illustration whereas the third masnawi has thirteen two of which are double-page and three of them are later additions. Unfortunately, the colophon of the manuscript is erased and neither the date nor the name of the scribe is read. The general scheme of the original paintings in Philadelphia "Khamsa" is less detailed and rather simple where only the necessary elements are represented. Departure from the traditional patterns, themes and compositions are visible as well as the recognition of new topics that are introduced to the late Ottoman manuscript painting in the eighteenth century. When compared with the other illustrated copies, the Topkapı "Khamsa" appears to be the prototype of the Philadelphia "Khamsa" since there are many repetitions of similar topics. Although it is in an incomplete state, the "Khamsa" of 'Atâ'-î in Philadelphia is worth further research since it reflects the stylistic and iconographical approach of the Ottoman workshop in the eighteenth century. The significance of the Philadelphia Khamsa lies in this fact. This paper introduces the manuscript and discusses its illustrations in a comparative fashion. The study also aims to propound the importance of such secondary copies in the illustrated manuscript research.

This study aims to discuss the author’s representation in the illustrated biographical writings (tazkiras) of the Islamic literature both in Persian and Ottoman works. Tazkiras serve to establish origins and display a celebrated person’s type through his or her life, actions and sayings. The word tazkira comes from the root “zikr” which means “to remember” or “to recollect”; therefore tazkira works are also memorial writings (reminders). Despite the large amount of the tazkiras written in Arab, Iran and Ottoman lands and cultures, only a small group of them have been illustrated so as to visualize the texts. A rare group of tazkiras have the representation of the author as well as the other personage. The depiction of the author accompanying the text in biographical writings is an element that served the same aim: to carry the information and the visual image of the author into the future. In this paper, the author portraits from the Persian and Ottoman illustrated tazkiras are discussed according to text-image relationship and general scheme of composition.

This paper focuses on the visual and textual portrayal of the Polish commander and hetman (highest military officer), Stanislaw Żółkiewski (d. 1620), in an early 17th-century Ottoman illustrated history book, the Şehname-i Nadiri. Żółkiewski’s legendary memory was cemented in Polish history with his depictions in painting and literature. Yet, his depiction in a well-known Ottoman book has largely escaped scholarly attention. The text of the Şehname-i Nadiri describes Żółkiewski as a wise and influential nobleman before it narrates his death on the battlefield by both lamenting the demise of a nobleman and celebrating the Ottoman victory. A painting of the Battle of Cecora in the same volume emphasizes his high rank and hints at the aftermath of his death. These textual and visual portrayals in the Şehname-i Nadiri offer an insight into representations of the Other in Ottoman historical narratives.

Keywords: Ottoman illustrated histories, Other, Şehname-i Nadiri, Battle of Cecora, Stanislaw Żółkiewski

UDK 94(560):09”16”

This paper is an attempt at understanding the history, organization and functions of the Ottoman nakkaşhane. The discussion will be limited to the Ottoman nakkaşhane of the sixteenth century, and later developments within the institution will not be taken into consideration. Yet, there will be a brief comparison of it to the contemporary kitabkhanas of Safavid and Mughal Empires and to the earlier Timurid kitabkhana.
Thus, the paper will have two sections. The first section will begin with a discussion of kitabkhana as a concept, and briefly touch upon the kitabkhana practices outside of the Ottoman realm. The second section will focus on the Ottoman nakkaşhane in two parts. A discussion of the Ehli Hiref Teşkilatı, its history and organization in the first part will be followed in the second part by an account of the possible location of the nakkaşhane and the job definition of a nakkaş in the sixteenth century Ottoman court.

Drawings of Umbrella Through models of manuscripts and albums in the Indian Mughal School and its local Indian schools "A Comparative Archaeological Study"
Dr.saleh fathe saleh•
Abstract:
This research is an attempt to provide a general analysis of the shape of the umbrella, which is one of the elements that characterized the portrayals of Islamic manuscripts pictured, in different schools of painting, but also applied to applied artifacts, and he and the holder of the features of the distinctive technique of graphic painting in a number of schools. The study aims at rooting for the umbrella. It begins with the meaning of the different places and times, and the periods in which the umbrella was used, whether ancient or Islamic, and the people who were raised above their heads of caliphs and their children, sultans, wives of sultans and their children, ministers and messengers of sultans, will also be subjected to descriptive and analytical study of the images found In the manuscripts and albums of the mughal school and the local schools to find out the most important forms in each school, and colors, and accompanying decorations, and the subjects raised in it.
Key words
  Umbrella - Dome and bird - Moghli Hindi - Manuscripts - Albums.