Procession with model of the Süleyman mosque

This illustrated double page comes from the Book of Festivities, an illustrated account of the celebrations given by Sultan Murad III (1574-1595) on the occasion of the circumcision of his son, prince Mehmet, which lasted for fifty days and fifty nights.

The manuscript originally contained 250 double page illustrations, by eight artists in different styles, working under the direction of Master Osman. This double page depicts a procession of architects with the architectural model of the Süleyman mosque.

The scene takes place within a fixed frame, the presence of which on all the double page illustrations of the album reinforces the impression of a procession in movement. The hippodrome in Istanbul, which was the centre of public life from the Byzantine period, was decorated for the occasion. A column and an obelisk are visible to the left and in the centre, respectively. The palace of the vizier, Ibrahim Pacha, in the upper left, was the Sultan’s residence for the duration of the festivities. He could watch the celebrations directly from his loggia. European artists visiting Istanbul in the sixteenth century also depicted the hippodrome[1].

On the right hand side, stands a building intended for Turkish and foreign spectators. The European guests are recognisable from their dress; at this period, dress was an important identifying code. Equally in the West, European artists[2] demonstrated an almost ethnographic interest in Turkish costume. The central part of the building, with closed red shutters was reserved for women.

The procession is depicted with the same precision and abundance of detail as the background. The scenes which change from one page to the next, contrast with the unchanging background thereby giving an illusion of movement.

The exhibition in 1582 of the model of the building erected several decades earlier (1550-1557) indicates the particular place which the celebrated mosque (built by the architect Sinan, whose genius is praised in the Surname) occupied from the sixteenth century in the history of Ottoman architecture. We know that architectural plans were supplemented by these models. The same practice was current in Renaissance Italy and survived in the Ottoman Empire until the twentieth century[3].

The subject of this collection demonstrates the Ottoman taste for contemporary history. This trend appeared from the beginning of the sixteenth century during the reign of Selim I (1512-1520) with the Selimname[4]. This interest is also exemplified by the charts and views of cities executed by historians like Matrakçi Nasuh[5] or Pir-i Reis and was expressed stylistically by the great attention paid to the realism of the scenes represented. This concern for detail makes these miniatures an impressive source of information on social, cultural and economic life in Istanbul in the second half of the sixteenth century.

This pursuit of realism followed a period characterised by the influence of Iranian painting which began after 1514 when Tabriz artists arrived in Istanbul[6]. The 1530s saw the emergence, with the influence of Safavid painting of Shiraz from the 1520s, of a more realistic style in which the decorative aspect was still very present[7].

The arrival in the Palace workshop of Nakkas Osman in the last years of the reign of Süleyman marked the beginning of the archetypal Ottoman style. The collaboration between the master illustrator and the historiographer and calligrapher Sayyid Lokman, who we know lived at the Palace from 1566, culminated in the illustrated history of the reign of Sultan Sülyeman, the Süleymanname[8].

[2] Diverses manières de se vêtir des Turcs, probably Istanbul, C17th, Venice, Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana, inv. Cod.It.IV, 491 (5578). Photo in venise et l’orient , p.114-115, n°13.

[3] Model of Fountain, Turkey, 1907, sculpted wood, painted and gilded; inlays of mother-of-pearl, ivory and polychrome marble, Istanbul, Yildiz Sarayi Müzesi, inv.364. Photo in Topkapi à Versailles, p.312.

[4] This album is held at the Library of Topkapi Sarayi Müzesi, inv. H.1597-98.

[5] The Port of Modon, Tarih Sultan Bayazid, Turkey, c. 1540, ink and colours, silver and gold on sized, watermarked paper, Istanbul, Library of Topkapi Sarayi Müzesi, inv. R.1272, f. 24b-25a. Photo in Soliman p.96

[6] Anthology of poetry, Turkey, c. 1520-1530, opaque colours and gold on sized paper, Istanbul, Library of Topkapi Sarayi Müzesi, inv. YY846, f. 57b-58a. Photo in Soliman p.200 n°215.

[7] Hamse-i Neva’i, Turkey, 1530-1531, Istanbul, Library of Topkapi Sarayi Müzesi, inv. H 801.

[8] Suleymanname, Turkey, 1579-1580, Dublin, Chester Beatty Library, inv. 413.