Lâleli Külliyesi Hat Düzeni (Kitabe ve Yazıların Değerlendirilmesi)
Mustafa SürünIII. Mustafa (1757-1774) tarafından 1760-1764 yıllarında inşa ettirilmiş olan Lâleli Külliyesi mimari özellikleri ile Osmanlı’nın klasikten Batılılaşmaya geçişi esnasındaki ara dönemi temsil etmektedir. Külliye bu yönüyle 18. yüzyılda yaşanan toplumsal ve zihinsel kırılmaların, mimari üzerinden de takip edilmesine imkân sağlamaktadır. Mimar Mehmed Tahir Ağa (ö. 1202/1788’den sonra) tarafından tamamlanan külliye zaman içerisinde birçok kez tamir görmüştür. III. Mustafa döneminde İstanbul’un genelini tahrip eden deprem ve yangın gibi afetlerden külliye de etkilenmiştir. İstanbul’un birçok yapısını yeniden inşa ve ihya etmesi sebebiyle III. Mustafa önemli bani padişahlar arasında yer almaktadır. Makalemizde bütün bu tarihî süreç ve bahsedilen olguların mimariye bağlı unsurlardan biri olan yazılarda nasıl bir etkinin olduğu ortaya çıkarılmaya çalışılmıştır. Genelde mimarideki biçimsel ve işlevsel değişikler ele alınırken mimariye bağlı diğer unsurların kendi istikametleri göz ardı edilebilmektedir. Özellikle mimarinin ayrılmaz bir parçası olan yazı ve kitabelerin gerek konumları gerekse içerikleri bu açıdan değerlendirilmelidir. Çünkü kitabeler dinî içerikler yanında değişen toplumsal sosyoloji karşısında siyasi içerik ve mesajlar da taşıyabilmektedir. Bu makalede Lâleli Külliyesi’nin sahip olduğu kitabe ve yazılar bütün yönleriyle değerlendirilmeye çalışılmıştır.
The Calligraphic Arrangement of the Laleli Complex (Evaluation of Inscriptions and Writings)
Mustafa SürünThe Laleli Complex was built by Mustafa III 1760-1764 and its architectural features are representative of the intermediate period of the transition from classical Ottoman to Westernization. This feature of the complex also allows one to follow the social and mental breakdowns experienced in the 18th century through architecture. The complex was completed by the architect Mehmed Tahir Ağa and was repaired many times. During the reign of Mustafa III, the complex was affected by disasters such as earthquakes and fires that destroyed many parts of Istanbul. Mustafa III is considered among the important patron sultans due to having rebuilt and revived many of Istanbul’s structures. This article attempts to reveal how the entirety of this historical process and the related phenomena affected the inscriptions as an architecture-related element. This article generally addresses the formal and functional changes that occurred in architecture while being able to ignore the direction of other architecture-related elements. The placement and content of the inscriptions and epigraphs in particular should be evaluated from this perspective, as they are an integral part of architecture due to their ability to convey political content and messages in addition to religious content in the face of a changing sociology. This article attempts to evaluate all aspects of the inscriptions and writings in the Laleli Complex.
Laleli Complex was built by Mustafa III between 1760-1764, and its architectural features represent the intermediate period of the transition from classical Ottoman to Western. From this perspective, the complex provides an opportunity through its architecture to follow the social and intellectual changes experienced in the 18th century. As an architectural element indicating the changes in contentregarding the social and political transformations of the Ottomans or the personal preferences of the patrons and architects, the complex’s inscriptions should be an issue that gets evaluated using current art history research methods. The inscriptions are able to convey religious content as well as the political messages within the changing sociology. This article attempts to evaluate all aspects of the inscriptions and calligraphy in the Laleli Complex and consists of an introduction, two sections on developments, an evaluation section, and the conclusion. The first section is titled Laleli Complex and provides information about the history and architecture of the complex, about the life story of Sultan Mustafa III, the construction activities during his reign, and about the architect Mimar Tahir Ağa and the calligrapher Mehmed Vasfi. The second section is titled The Inscriptions and Calligraphies of the Laleli Complex and makes mention of all the inscriptions in the complex, both inside and outside while evaluating them according to their physical placement and the aesthetic intent and meaning in their placement, as well as the language, textual features, and calligraphical features.
The calligraphy works at Lâleli Complex are very rich. The inscriptions are generally found in the interior of the mosque, in its surroundings, on the fountain and on the tomb. Other inscriptions are also found on the doors that provide access to the outer courtyard from other parts of the complex, on the door between the graveyard and soup kitchen, on the sultan’s ramp and in the sultan’s lodge. The taliq script is used on the sundial inscription, while jali thuluth script was used for all the other ones. The content of the inscriptions were selected from Qur’anic verses, hadiths, and prayer phrases that are suitable for the location and functionality of the structures. When looking at the distribution of the inscriptions, five inscriptions are known to be on the first door that provides the entrance to the outer courtyard from the street side and the fountains, one inscription is on the second door, five couplet inscriptions are at the fountain, one inscription is on the door to the graveyard’s door, one inscription is on the entrance window, two inscriptions are at the tomb door (1 outside and 1 inside), and one belt inscription is inside the tomb. One inscription is on the door to the imaret [public soup kitchen], a total of three inscriptions are on the doors providing entrance to the portico courtyard from different directions, one inscription is on the door to the sultan’s ramp, one inscription is in the sultan’s mansion, and one inscription is on the sundial. A total of four inscriptions are on the right and left sides of the sofa mihrabiyes [small ornate niches to the sides of doors] and the doors opening from the sofas to the mosque. A total of five inscriptions are on the mihrabiyes, doors, and main gate, and a total of 22 inscriptions are on the lower floor doors and windows inside the mosque. One inscription is on the upper part of the mihrab, a total of three inscriptions are on the door and sides of the pulpit, and a total of four inscriptions are on the door and wall of the sultan’s mahfil [elevated lodge in a mosque] on the upper floor.
Sources report the writings in the complex to belong to the calligrapher Mehmed Vasfi. Although this approach is partially correct, all writings cannot be said to belong to him, because the inscriptions in the complex have different dates and styles. This study understands the inscriptions to belong to more than one calligrapher and to have been added to the buildings at different times. The inscriptions on the windows inside the mosque are particularly remarkable. These inscriptions contain hadiths that encourage and give advice about the construction of mosques; the hadiths also mention how the people who do this kind of work will be rewarded in Paradise. These may be a tribute to the sultan who patronized many architectural works, including mosques and masjids, because of an earthquake. In addition, the hadiths can be considered as attempts to encourage the community to help rebuild the mosques and masjids that were waiting to be restored after the earthquake. While the calligraphy and content of the inscriptions in Laleli Complex do maintain the early and classical period preferences, examples of new applications are also found there. The inscriptions on the tops of doors, on the pulpit, and on the mihrab held to the tradition. One distinctive feature of the calligraphical order of the Laleli Complex is to bring together many verses and hadiths inside the mosque and in the fountain that provide integrity in order to greater emphasize the meaning of a certain subject. Some expressions that had been used in the past were observed to have started being used again after a long time in the Lâleli Complex and other 18th-century structures. After this time, new phrases were seen to be preferred.
