Formal Features of Konya Sultan Selim (Suleymaniye) Mosque and a Contribution to The Subject of Authorship
Ali Naci ÖzyalvaçSultan Selim Mosque is an important classical period work located to the west of Mevlânâ Dervish Lodge in Konya, and there are various opinions about the date of construction, the patron and identity of the architect. Due to the absence of inscriptions, foundation records, construction exploration books or in-state correspondence, it is important to turn directly to the mosque, which is one of the sultan mosques that Mimar Sinan was responsible for due to his position. As a method, with current surveys and on-site measurements, the lists that have previously been made in the catalog study on Mimar Sinan period mosques in Istanbul were benefited from. As a result, for the first time in the Sultan Selim Mosque, the interior space, the narthex and the arch types used in the facades were classified in terms of establishment principles and it was possible to evaluate them with other structures in which they were used. As a result, the building’s similarities with the important buildings built in the capital were revealed by this research during the period when Mimar Sinan was acting as the architect, and conclusions were reached to support the claims that point to 1560 and beyond as the date of construction. In addition to space measurements, wall designs and arch configurations, which are among the parameters used in the comparison of the mosques built in the Mimar Sinan period in Istanbul, the issue of the use of ratio in plan and section planes has emerged as a new title, and in this context the research needs to be continued. Although the comments about the overall expression of the building were confirmed with concrete data, the work, which appears as a mature and distinguished example among the buildings it is contemporary in, is waiting to be handled with new studies in this direction.
Konya Sultan Selim (Süleymaniye) Camii Biçim Özellikleri ve Müellif Mimar Meselesine Bir Katkı
Ali Naci ÖzyalvaçKonya’da Mevlânâ Dergâhı’nın batısında bulunan Sultan Selim Camii yapım tarihi, banisi ve mimarının kimliği konusunda muhtelif görüşler bulunan önemli bir klasik dönem eseridir. Tarihi kent merkezinde içinde bulunduğu yapılar topluluğu, XX. yüzyılda yıkımlar ile bütünlüğünü yitirmişse de caminin yörenin sahip olduğu en nitelikli Osmanlı mimarlığı örneği olması vasfı devam etmiştir. Sultan Süleyman’ın padişahlığı ve Mimar Sinan’ın mimarbaşılığı dönemine tarihlenen yapının Sinan’ın eserlerini veren listelerde yer almayışı yanında, kitle kompozisyonu açısından daha erken dönem örnekleri çağrıştırması sebebiyle müelliflik konusu şimdiye dek açıklığa kavuşmamıştır. Bu çalışmada amaç, yapının mekân boyutları ve kemer biçimlenişleri gibi biçimsel özelliklerinin diğer yapılar ile kıyaslanması yoluyla tasarım yaklaşımlarını inceleyerek İstanbul’da Sinan dönemi camilerindeki benzer tutumların araştırılmasıdır. Yöntem olarak güncel rölöveler ve yerinde ölçümler ile daha önceden İstanbul’da Mimar Sinan dönemi camileri üzerine yaptığımız katalog çalışmasına müracaat edilmektedir. Sonuç olarak ilk kez Sultan Selim Camii’nde iç mekân, son cemaat yeri ve cephelerde kullanılan kemer tipleri kuruluş ilkeleri bakımından sınıflandırılmış ve bu tiplerin kullanıldığı diğer yapılar ile değerlendirilmiştir. Netice olarak yapının Sultan Selim’in tahta çıktığı ve Sinan’ın mimarbaşı olarak görev yapmakta olduğu dönemde başkentte inşa edilmiş önemli yapılar ile benzerlikleri ortaya konmuş ve yapım tarihine ilişkin 1560 ve sonrasını işaret eden iddiaları destekleyecek sonuçlara ulaşılmıştır. Ayrıca mekân boyutları ve duvar teşkilatı gibi açılardan yapılar kıyaslanmış, plan ve kesit düzlemlerinde oran kullanımı hakkında burada ulaşılan bilgiler ile konunun genişletilerek devam ettirilmesinin gerekliliği ortaya çıkmıştır. Yapının tümel ifadesi hakkında yapılan yorumlar somut veriler ile teyit edilmekle birlikte kullanılan kemer tipleri bakımından çağdaşı olduğu yapılar arasında olgun ve seçkin bir örnek olarak beliren eser, bu yönde yeni çalışmalar ile ele alınmayı beklemektedir.
Although the complex of buildings in the historical city center lost its integrity with the destructions in the 20th century, the mosque continues to be the most qualified example of Ottoman architecture of the city. The issue of commissioning has not been clarified since its building, which has been dated to the sultanate of Sultan Süleyman and the architect of Mimar Sinan, and was not included in the lists that recorded the works of Sinan and evoked earlier examples of Ottoman architecture in terms of mass composition. There are various opinions about the construction date of the mosque, patronage and the architect. The documents related to the construction of the mosque in the documents belonging to the period of Suleyman the Magnificent were interpreted as the building was built by him. Some other researchers claimed that the building was built by Selim II, son of Sultan Süleyman, the governor of Konya. In addition to Mimar Sinan, the names of Architect Acem Ali (Alâeddin Ali Bey) and Architect Cemâleddin from Aleppo were proposed as the designers of the building, for which we do not have any information about its architect.
The aim of this study is to investigate similar attitudes in the Sinan period mosques in Istanbul by examining the design approaches by comparing the formal features of the building such as space dimensions and arch formation with other structures. If the arch types encountered in the building are considered together, it can also be seen that previous architectural experience gained from the construction of important works that were completed in Istanbul in the period of Mimar Sinan was used in this structure, prior to the date when the Sultan Selim Mosque was allegedly built. Interesting findings have been reached in terms of ratio research in horizontal and vertical projection planes, and the introduction of this design approach and comparison of this approach with other buildings will be considered as a separate publication.
The pointed arch (1) between two pillars bearing the central dome of the building in the direction of the qibla, the arches (2) connecting the feet to the wall buttress at the north of the harim, three pointed arches (3) that continue from the north wall to the mihrab wall on the east and west of the middle nave, the arches (4) that connect these feet and columns to the walls behind them, the arch (5) below the upper floor of the northern wall, the pointed arches (6) in the narthex porches on the north facade of the mosque and discharging arches (7) over the window and door openings were examined in terms of dimensions and centers of the arcs that set the arches up. Examples of two-centered pointed arches, which were built using points found by dividing the opening, are also found in the 19 mosques built in the Mimar Sinan period in Istanbul, which we have classified in our previous studies.
The arch (1) that connects the feet carrying the dome is a two-center pointed arch close to the circle with an opening of 12.85 m and a height of 6.50 m and similarly, on the other direction (2) has an opening of 13.70 m and both of them have a 1.52 m width in plan. These arches are the elements of rising cubic parts that dominate the structure’s outer appearance. Zal Mahmut Pasha Mosque (1577) is similar to this structure in that the arches carrying the dome have a 12.42 m span and 6.32 m height. Fatih Bali Pasha (1546), Kılıç Ali Pasha (1581) and Üsküdar Mihrimah Sultan Mosques (1547) are the structures where the circular arch is used in a similar size.
The arches (3) between pillars at the springing line of 5.60 m above ground with a 6.00 m opening are all typical pencî pointed arches which are formed by dividing the span by 5. The arches (4) that connect these feet and columns to the walls behind them are all these types of two centered pointed arches with approximately 5.30 to 6.00 m span size. The same type is frequently used in the discharging arches (7) over the window and door openings. There are similar pointed arches connecting the feet in the walls at the same elevation as the windows and doors under the small domes on the east-west facades of the harim. It is seen that this arch type is the most preferred type among the 19 Mimar Sinan period Istanbul mosques with 40 percent indoors. Fatih Nişancı Mehmet Pasha, which has an eight-supported plan scheme, and Fındıklı Molla Çelebi and Topkapı Kara Ahmet Pasha Mosques, which have a 6-supported scheme, are smaller applications where the arches carrying the main dome are this (1:5) type. In Şehzadebaşı, Süleymaniye, Üsküdar Atik Valide, Azapkapı Sokullu Mehmet Paşa and Üsküdar Mihrimah Sultan Mosque, such (1:5) arches dominate the interior appearance of the building. Similar examples of span size of these arches are 5.67 m in the Fındıklı Molla Çelebi Mosque, 5.70 m in the Topkapı Kara Ahmet Paşa Mosque and 5.70 m in the Şehzadebaşı Mosque.
The arch (5) with 2.65 m width in plan on the north wall on the entrance door is a round arch with 13.40 m span which has the springing line at 2.25 m above the floor. The narthex portico is wider and higher in the middle, three identical arches on each side, with seven pointed arches that sit on the walls on both sides and 6 columns in the middle. All of the arches (6) seen on the front and connecting the columns to the north wall are two-centered pointed arches consisting of springs drawn from the points found by dividing the opening by 7. The pointed arches with an opening of 5.17 m in the first row of five-unit porticoes of the Üsküdar Mihrimah Sultan Mosque narthex are of the same type as the portico arches seen here. Süleymaniye Mosque courtyard porches are an example where both (1:5) and (1:7) proportioned pointed arches are used together. The ones used in the five-unit narthex porticoes of Eyüp Zal Mahmut Pasha Mosque are pointed arches with a 4.14 m span and (1:7) ratio, which is very similar to the arches we find here. We encounter the same type (1:7) at Üsküdar Atik Valide Mosque narthex on the east and west facades of the first-row porticoes with a 4.45 m span. Considering the data obtained, it is understood that Konya Sultan Selim Mosque can be evaluated with the works of Mimar Sinan in the first half of the 16th century. In addition, it was seen that further research was needed to compare the works of pre-Sinan architects with their works to understand the reason of the visual similarity of the building with the pre-classical mosques.
