TURKISH ART OF GLASS AS PRODUCTS OF CULTURE WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF TRADITIONAL HANDICRAFTS: ANALYSIS OF SURNAME-I HÜMAYUN


ASLAN T., YAZAR T.

Turkish Studies (Elektronik), vol.10, no.5, pp.13-26, 2015 (Peer-Reviewed Journal) identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 10 Issue: 5
  • Publication Date: 2015
  • Journal Name: Turkish Studies (Elektronik)
  • Journal Indexes: TR DİZİN (ULAKBİM)
  • Page Numbers: pp.13-26
  • Ondokuz Mayıs University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Glass, which is thought to have been discovered in the Bronze Ageat the age of 3 B. C. and the first examples of which can be seen in agreat number places from Mesopotamia to Egypt, Mediterranean toAnatolia, has had an important place in almost every part of our livesfrom technical needs to daily use, from luxurious consumer goods toindustrial products. Glass is an artifact and it can be found in natureas obsidian and rock crystal/natural quartz (pebble). Rock crystal, alsoknown as natural quartz, is almost colorless and semi transparent.Examples such as the lion’s head from the fourth quarter of 3000 B.C.found in Troy and the Hittite statue made in 13th and 14th centuriesB.C. show that rock crystal has been used in Anatolia from very oldtimes (Canav, 1985: 19).In line with the resources and the data obtained, leaving theprimitive methods in processing glass with the discovery of glassblowing pipe in Syria in 50 B.C. is considered as the radical changeused in glass processing. Antique glass products: Roman glass (100B.C.–400 A.D.) other residential areas within Italy, England, France,Spain, Belgium, Balkans, Anatolia, North Africa, Cyprus, Syria,Alexandria and Roman Empire; Byzantine glass (5–15 A.D.), EasternMediterranean coastal areas that produced most advanced containersand ornaments as well as mosaic and plain glass with free blowingtechnique, Ottoman glass making which occured at the same time withthe bright periods of Bohemian glass making in the 19th century,Beykoz style glasses with their unique technique and ornaments are allnamed according to their methods of processing and modeling withtheir periods. Ottoman art of glass brought out works which were called“Turkish Style” in Europe.The first examples of Turkish Glass art can be seen in Seljukianand Ottoman periods. Anatolian Seljukians who had a unique style interms of architecture and richness of material also had a richproductivity in terms of handicraft. There is different information onwhere Seljukian period glass art examples are produced; importantexamples of this period were seen in excavations of Kubad-Abad Palace,on the foot of Anamas Mountain, which was used as the summer palaceof Sultan Alaeddin Keykubad.Ottoman art of glass had its foundations in Seljukian glassmaking; however, it created its unique style based on the examplestoday and experienced its brightest period especially in 19th century.Glass industry developed especially after the conquest of İstanbul in theOttoman period. In Ottoman period, guilds had very firm rules for everything from getting the raw materials necessary for the art oroccupation, to processing, forming and selling these raw materials. Thissituation brought an order to the relations both among producers andbetween the producer and the user. In documents that belong to theperiod of Suleyman the Magnificent, there are names of glass makers.Camger Hasan and Yusuf are well-known names. According to a censusin İstanbul during the period of Sultan Murat IV, Evliya Çelebi mentionsthe number of glass workshops working for the government, the shopsand the workers in these shops and workshops.Although there are documents about Ottoman glass making in theconstruction of Suleymaniye mosque and imaret (1550-1557), there arefew documents about the production and modeling of the glass makersof the period. Thus, Ottoman period miniatures are accepted as thestrongest written and visual documents of their times. One of the mostimportant documents is the miniature by muralist Levni which depictsthe circumcision feast of Sultan Ahmet III’s four sons and the show of“şişebaz”s in poet Hüseyin Vehbi’s “Surname-i Vehbi”. This miniature isin Topkapı Palace Museum. Another important document is theminiatures by muralist Osman in Surname-i Hümayun which depict thecircumcision feast of Sultan Murad III’s son Mehmed in 1582 whichlasted for 52 days and 52 nights and also the parade of the Ottomanglass producers and workers. With this aspect, the work is a historicalresource that shows the 10th – 16th centuries Ottoman life, economy,social life, culture, art and entertainment life. Preparing a mobile glassworkshop in which glass is blown, even with the purpose of making ashow to the sultan, presents many difficulties considering theconditions of the period. The workers around the platform produceglass. In another miniature, Camgers of the Camgeran guild whichmarch by carrying glass in their hands show off their skills. Glassesused in the show are typical Ottoman glass and ceramic products. Thecolor blue used in the glass is also seen in Ottoman style chinaware art.When considered from this aspect, it can be seen that the arts of glassand ceramic developed together in the Ottoman Empire.One of the interesting areas that do not come to mind immediatelywhile speaking of traditional Turkish glass making is the use of colorfulglasses in architecture. Within the traditional construction, glazedwindows were used frequently in palaces and konaks. In the 402ndpage of Surname-i Hümayun, which is in Topkapı Palace, makers ofglazed windows can be seen. The tradition of colorful glass plasterwindow is known to be used intensively. The miniature that depictedarchitects and engineers with a model of Süleymaniye mosque made ofwood and ivory is remarkable since it represents Sinan the Architectwho was most probably alive then and the magnificence of Ottoman artthrough is most monumental construction (Tamcan, 2007). Anotherimportant visual of this miniature is the use of colorful glass in the topwindows of the model of the mosque.The present study used a descriptive survey model to reachinformation and documents about Turkish art of glass as culturalproducts of traditional artifacts and the data was collected throughdocument analysis and the literature. As docume
Cam, İnsanlığın ilk dönemlerinden günümüze dek geçen sürede teknik ihtiyaçtan, gündelik kullanıma; lüks tüketim maddesinden, endüstriyel ürün olarak kullanımına kadar yaşamın hemen her alanında kullanılagelmiştir. Kırılganlığı ve korunmaya muhtaç özelliği gereği günümüze kadar çok azı ulaşmış olan ve gelişim süreci ile ilgili kesin kayıt ve belgeleri bulunmayan Türk Cam Sanatının ilk örneklerine kısıtlı olarak Selçuklu ve Osmanlı dönemlerinde rastlarız. Mimari ve malzeme zenginliği açısından kendine özgü üslubu olan Anadolu Selçukluları, el sanatlarında da zengin bir üretime sahiptir. Nerede üretildiklerine dair farklı bilgilerin olduğu, Selçuklu dönemi cam sanatı örnekleriyle ilgili önemli bulgulara, Beyşehir Gölü kenarında, Anamas Dağı eteklerinde bulunan, Sultan Alaeddin Keykubad'ın yazlık olarak kullandığı Kubad Abad Sarayı kazılarında rastlanılmıştır. Osmanlı cam işleme sanatı, temelini Selçuklu camcılığından almış; ancak kendine özgü tarzını yaratarak özellikle 19. Yüzyılda en parlak dönemini yaşamıştır. Süleymaniye cami ve imareti (1550-1557) yapımında Osmanlı Dönemi camcılığı ile ilgili belgeler bulunmasına rağmen, dönemin camcılarının üretim ve biçimlendirmeleri ile ilgili hiçbir belge bulunmamaktadır. Bu konuda en açıklayıcı belge olarak, III. Murad döneminde oğlu Şehzade Mehmed' in sünnet törenini (1582) anlatan "Surname-i Hümayun" da Nakkaş Osman ve ekibi tarafından yapıldığı bilinen minyatürün olduğu söylenebilir. Bu araştırmada geleneksel el sanatları bağlamında kültür ürünleri olarak Türk Cam sanatıyla ilgili bilgi ve belgelere ulaşabilmek amacıyla betimsel tarama modeli kullanılmış, veriler doküman incelemesi ve alanyazın yoluyla elde edilmiştir. Belge olarak Surname-i Hümayun konu bütünlüğü içerisinde analiz edilmiştir.