Gazel in honour of Süleyman the Magnificent

The collection which contains the gazel was brought back from Constantinople by the French Ambassador, Denis de la Haye-Ventelet, around 1665. It was then held by a succession of illustrious owners[1]; today it is held at the Bibliothèque nationale de France having been part of the collection of the abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. The progress of this work from Istanbul to Paris demonstrates the regard in which the Ottoman arts of the book were held in Western Europe.

This double page displays aesthetic and technical characteristics of the golden age of Ottoman book production in the sixteenth century. It is entirely on marbled paper. Delicate nuances of grey, white and yellow contrast with the grey-blue ground. Two rectangular spaces surrounded by gold borders are reserved for the poetic text realised in fine naskhi script.

From the end of the fifteenth century, Turkish lyric poetry influenced by Persian poetry was very much in vogue at the Ottoman court, inspired by the movement initiated by the poet Ahmed Pacha (d. in 1496). The gazel[2] was written in honour of Süleyman the Magnificent (r.1520-1566), himself a poet writing under the name of Muhibbi. It was copied into this collection a little before the death of its author, Mahmud Abdülbaki (known as Baki) (1526-1600). Called the ‘Sultan of Poets’, his fame was so great that his works were known as far as India.

The technique of marbled paper, employed intermittently in this collection, is called ebru alluding to the Persian term ‘abri’, meaning ‘cloud’. Originating in the Far East[3], it was probably introduced into Persia via the Silk Route or through India[4]. Its use is documented in Tabriz during the reign of Shah Tahmasp I towards 1550; it was probably used in the Ottoman workshops of the same period. Finely ground, natural earth pigments are mixed with ox gall then placed in a bath of gum tragacanth. The pigments float to the surface and varied motifs are obtained by manipulating the surface with a stylus. The motif is then transferred onto a sheet of paper placed on this surface. Many Ottoman manuscripts, including the Koran[5] and album pages[6], adopted this type of decoration.

The spread of marbled paper into Europe dates from the end of the sixteenth century, due notably to the import of Turkish tulip bulbs wrapped in marbled paper. European scholars referred to this technique[7], and it was also through literature that knowledge of this Turkish paper was disseminated in the West. The composition was adapted: the bath was composed of Irish seaweed (carragheen) and the paper was treated with alun. The marbling obtained was more angular than its Turkish counterparts.

Marbling which was closely connected to the arts of the book, also influenced Ottoman ceramics from the second half of the sixteenth century. It is found principally on architectural ceramic revetments, for example, in Süleyman the Magnificent’s tomb dated 1566. As an element of architectural decoration, these motifs recall the marble revetments employed since classical Antiquity. A jug in the LouvreMuseum[8] is a rare example of the use of this decoration applied to pieces of this form. As is the case in many branches of the decorative arts of the Ottoman period, motifs developed in the nakkash-khana are applied on a variety of supports.

Marbled paper is still very much in vogue, in Turkey as well as Europe[9].

[2] An erotic-mystical love poem.

[3] A text written in China in the T'ang dynasty (618-907) speaks of a paper decorated with five colours.

[4] According to certain sources, a Persian émigré to India, Mir Mohammad Taher, may have sent marbled paper to Safavid Iran circa 1550.

[5] Fascicule of the Koran, Turkey, 1526-1527, Istanbul, Türk ve Islam Eserleri Müzesi, inv. n°400, f.1b-2a.

[6] Page depicting a young European drawn by Veli Can, Turkey, second half of C16th, Istanbul, Library of Topkapi Sarayi Müzesi, H 2168 f. 14b.

[7] Athanasius Kircher, Discours sur le papier décoré à la turque, Rome, 1664.

[8] Iznik, Turkey 1565-1600, Paris, musée du Louvre, MAO 1207.

[9] In C20 th, the fly-leaves of numerous European works were still made of marbled paper.