KÜLL YE IN EYÜP SULTAN

KÜLL YE IN EYÜP SULTAN Prof. Dr. Gönül CANTAY Prof. Dr. Gönül Cantay is a faculty member in the Faculty of Sciences and Literature of Mimar Sinan University. Her work covers Turkish Works of Art within the territories of the Turkish Republic and includes investigations, applications and various studies on caravanserais (inns with large courtyards where caravans stop), külliye (complex of buildings adjacent to a mosque) and cities (settlements) where these are located. She is also recognized for her research, investigations and publications on medical facilities, medresse and asylums of Anatolian Turkish Architecture. Prof. Dr. Gönül Cantay, who presently continues to be very active in similar studies, is a member of the Committee of Preservation of Cultural and Natural Legacy of Edirne and directs investigations in Thrace and Çanakkale regions. She has published various scientific communications, articles, research papers and has authored books. 124

I received an invitation to the 4th Symposium on Eyüp Sultan, Its History, Culture and Arts only a very short time before its beginning date. So, I thought that it would be better for me not to attend, since not much work could possibly be done in such a limited time. Besides, the topic of this symposium was pre-selected, just as in the previous ones. Upon insistent demands in a telephone conversation held for some other reason, I searched the book of papers that were to be presented at this symposium. I realized that there were no articles in which the art history of Eyüp Sultan Külliye was evaluated. Therefore, I decided to prepare a paper on this subject. Now I want to share it with you. While my work progressed, I kept asking myself some questions for which I searched the answers. Here are some of these questions: - How did the Eyüp Sultan Külliye first come into existence and how was the harmony of the functional structures with the topography attained? - What kind of alterations and additions were made over the years? - What does the plan for the initial mosque of the külliye look like and in what ways does it structurally contribute to the history of art? - How was the main structure of külliye constructed; what was the plan used in re-building and covering the roof of the Mosque and were there new structures or sections added during the restructuring of the külliye for the second time? - How does the külliye stand in relation to its environment? - And, naturally, whether or not there is any original literature on it? If we start with the last question: 1 Ilustration 1. Original Eyüp Sultan Külliye, the plan of the mosque, medresse and tomb (E. H. Ayverdi). 1. The original information on Eyüp Sultan Külliye is found in issues of the Charters of Fatih s Foundation: A. Charter No. 1872 in the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts is a translation of the charter written in Turkish which is in the Archives of the Office of the General Director of Foundations and its exact copy was published by that Office in 1938. B. Charter No. 1872 which is in the Archives of the Office of the Prime Minister is a short section of the Charter 1872 which is in the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts. C. The charter written in Arabic which is at Topkap Palace is an exact translation by the German Institute (Tahsin Öz, Zwei Stiftungsurkunden des Sultans Mehmed II. Fatih, stanbuler Forschungen IV, Istanbul 1935). This issue is also a summary of the translation from main Arabic charters registered as A and C which was made in the 16-17th centuries. It is written like a book of instructions. An exact copy of this issue has also been published in Volume 1 of the Review of Charters in 1938. D. The Charter in Arabic which was prepared by Bayezid II. in his father s name. E. The Charter in Arabic which is at the General Office of Real Estate and Land Registry. (The two charters D and E are identical). F. Another charter in Arabic registered as No. 2182 in the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts. An exact copy of it was published in the Issue of Fatih Mehmed II. 125

There are two foundation documents directly concerning the Eyüp Sultan Külliye which was built by Sultan Mehmet II (Fatih). 2 One is the document known as Eyüp Foundation Charter which is found at the Office of the General Director of Foundations. In 1938, a facsimile of pages 286-325 of the document was published on page seven of the Fatih Mehmet II. Foundation Charter in Turkish. There is a marginal note in the charter which has been taken from the book called Garib üt tezhib by Allâme ibni Haceri Askâlanî. It introduces Halid bn-i Zeyd bni Küleybi Ansarî Ebu Eyyub and reports, one by one, the properties belonging to the foundation. Although all of Eyyub District is a foundation, there are various others including Edirne, to the west; Philippopolis (Plovdiv) and Anatolia from Bursa to Ayd n. A foundation in Silistre, in the north, is also mentioned. The documents contain detailed information on personnel and the collection and expenditure of foundation revenues. The second document is the one which is registered in Topkap Palace Museum as number 7744 and is also called the Eyüp Foundation Charter. It lists the foundations established by Fatih for the facility built by Sinaneddin Yusuf Pasha near the Eyyüb Tomb. 3 Ilustration 2. The plan of the mosque, medresse and tomb of Eyüp Sultan Külliye in 1800. (E. H. Ayverdi) Ilustration 3. Aerial photograph of Eyüp Sultan Külliye. (Istanbul Municipality photo archives). Ilustration 4. Eyüp Sultan Külliye viewed from the Golden Horn, May 1999. (G. Cantay archive) Charters, Office of the General Director of Foundations, Turkish Charters No. 1 (Ankara 1938). G. Another charter is registered as Hududname in One may find the revenues of the Eyyüb Külliye Foundations between (h. 894-895/m.1489-1490) in the Book of Accounts. 4 According to original references, the initial construction of the Eyyüb Sultan Külliye included the tomb, mosque, medresse, soup kitchen, and the Turkish bath. These sources also indicate that the külliye was built around the tomb which was the original structure constructed. As was pointed out by Evliya Çelebi, the mosque was built by Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan who gave the God s reward for this pious act to Hazret-i Ebû Eyyüb as a gift. We read in Evliya Çelebi s Book of Travels that every time he returned to Istanbul, he would go to Eyyüb Sultan Mosque where he 126

read the Koran. So, the information which he gave about the Eyyüb Mosque cannot be misleading. As a matter of fact, he realistically writes about the Mosque,... It has been built on level ground in the Capital of Islam, near the Seashore. The statement indicates that the buildings of the külliye, particularly the mosque, were constructed on alluvion grounds between the hill and shore, a fact that is also true. 5 We know of the plan for the original mosque in the külliye from the restoration plan of E.H.Ayverdi who has carried out very accurate source investigations. However, concerning the structure of the original mosque, E. Çelebi writes,... it has a single dome, there is a semidome in the direction of Mecca, but it is not very high, there is no column inside. There are strong arches around the middle-dome... Thus, E.H. Ayverdi interprets the plan based on this information. So, the interior of the original mosque in the Eyyüb Sultan Külliye was planned with a rectangular scheme breadthwise. The mihrab section in the direction towards Mecca, which was also rectangular in width and was covered with a semi-dome, constituted a lower part of the inner volume. Two broad pointed arches supported by two wall pillars on the north side and two other arches stretching along two walls defined a square the top of which was covered with a dome about 12 meters in diameter. This particular central dome constituted nearly half of the roof of the breadthwise rectangular structure. The other half was covered with two semidomes connected to arches on two sides. We are concerned with the roof problem of the original mosque for the following reason. Even though there have been previous examples of prototype semi-domes, it is in this structure, for the first time, that the static and contruction techniques for building adjoining central and semi-domes have been utilized successfully. Ilustration 5. Eyüp hills, May 1999. Ilustration 6. General view of Eyüp Sultan Mosque. Ilustration 7. Eastern view of Eyüp Sultan Mosque. Ilustration 8. Courtyard entrance to Eyüp Sultan Külliye. Ilustration 9. Courtyard of Eyüp Sultan Mosque. the General Office of Real Estate and Land Registry; it is a written copy of the Arabic Charter (in E) registered as No. 2182 in the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, which was deciphered by Turcologist fiükrü Güllüo lu and published by B. N. fiehsuvaro lu in Türk stanbul da T p Ö reniminin 500. Y ldönümü, stanbul T p Fakültesi Mecmuas, XXXIV, 1971, pp. 831-841. 2. This exact copy of the charter is kept in a safe, but is also registered on pages 193-197of Müceddet Anadolu, No 25 at the Office of the General Director of Foundations. 3. Eyyüb Zaviyesi Charter (Topkap Palace) is found as a scroll which is inlaid with gold. The original document was prepared at the time of Fatih (861/1457) and was reorganized by Murat III. Fatih s charters were organized during 867-875/1463-1470. (See Fatih Mehmet II. Vakfiyeleri, Ankara, 1938, p. 10 and others). E. H. Ayverdi has basically taken the charter which was organized during the time of Murat III. towards the end of January 1582 (Fatih Devri III, Istanbul, 1989, p. 348 and others). 4. Barkan, Ö. Lütfi, Muhâsebe-i Evkaaf- Hazret-i Eyyüb ül Ensârî Aleyhirahmet il-bârî, ktisat Fakültesi Mecmuas 23, c. 1-2, stanbul, 1962/3, pp. 373-379 127

Ilustration 10. Exterior courtyard and fountain of Eyüp Sultan Külliye. Ilustration 11. Entrance door to Eyüp Sultan Tomb. Ilustration 12. Courtyard to Eyüp Sultan Külliye. Ilustration 13. Tiles on the walls of the courtyard of Eyüp Sultan Tomb. mosque. He, for the first time, adjoined a semidome in mihrab area to a central dome 26 meters in diameter and 44 meters high, using a square plan, free and supported by a bearing wall. This would lead to the 16th century success of Sinan and his school of architects. 5. Evliya Çelebi, Seyahatname, vol. 1, stanbul, 1314, pp. 396-367. The same type of construction was to be used later in Sheikh Vefa Mosque in Vefa, which was again built by Fatih (881/1476) based on a rectangular plan in width, with a dome of 11 meters in diameter and two adjoining semi-domes. The planning of the original mosque in the Külliye that Fatih had built in his name during 1463-1470, would reflect the same scheme previously used in the Rum Mehmet Pasha Mosque in Üsküdar, constructed in 876/1471-2. The latter mosque was designed in the shape of a square prism with a semi-dome built into the same arch in mihrab area. Architect Sinaneddin Yusuf would be very successful in the construction of the above Let s go back to another question; what kind of alterations and additions have taken place in the külliye over the years? Clearly, here we should consider not only the changes made in the interiors of structures, but the exterior alterations as well. The sanctuary which has two minarets and is surrounded by a porch on three sides, as mentioned in written sources of information, must refer to where the last congregation gathered, as well as the medresse area on both sides of the courtyard. The octagonal tomb is located northwest of the medresse courtyard. Thus, the tomb, the mosque and the medresse, all of which are located on the axis of the mihrab, share the same courtyard. The idea was to form an organic bond between these three structures by giving them a common courtyard. This kind of planning is not observed in early Ottoman külliyes and was first used in 128

Mentefleo lu lyas Bey s Külliye in Milet (1404). In this Külliye, the mosque, the tomb and the medresse share the same courtyard, which contains a fountain. The plan used in Eyyüb Külliye and the way in which the topography was evaluated would later be utilized by Sinan and other architects belonging to his school. Some of the examples are the Ahmet Pasha Külliye in Topkap (1555-1558), Sinan Pasha Külliye in Befliktafl (1555), Mihrimah Sultan Külliye in Edirnekap (1558), Sokullu Külliye in Kad rga (1572) and the Sokullu Külliye in Lüleburgaz (1579-1580). Ilustration 14. Interior of Eyüp Sultan Tomb. Ilustration 15. Prayer window of Eyüp Sultan Tomb. Ilustration 16. Ramp of sultans lodge at Eyüp Sultan Mosque. Ilustration 17. Sultans lodge at Eyüp Sultan Mosque. The information, particularly in relation to the mosque in the Eyyüb Külliye, as given in Hadikat ül-cavami by Ayvansarayî, reveals that this mosque was in ruins towards the end of the 18th century. One week after the restoration work started, the structure was completely demolished (1798) to its foundations. 6 The article in Rûz-name concerning the decision to pull down the whole structure is important. Based on what has been written in Hadikat ül-cavami, it is understood that almost every structure of this külliye has either undergone renovations or new parts have been added by various persons and particularly, by different sultans. These may be summarized as follows: 7 In 1592, Defterdar Ekmekcibafl Ahmet Pasha made an addition in front of the stone on which the coffin is placed. In 1724, the two minarets were made higher to hang the messages between them, spelled out by lights during Ramadan. So, now each one had two balconies from which the call to prayer could be made. The minaret facing the sea was struck by lightening in 1726 and was restored. K zlara as Hac Beflir A a had two private enclosed spaces built outside the mosque where he is buried. Sultan Ahmed I had the consultation window put in and moved the Prophet Muhammad s footmark to another location (1732). 6. Ayvansarayî, Hadikat ül Cevâmî, vol. 1, Istanbul, 1281. 7. Ayverdi, E. Hakk, Fatih Devri Mimarisi, vol. 3, Istanbul, 1989, p. 351, fn. 1. 129

Ilustration 18. The plan of the bath in Eyüp Sultan Külliye(E. H. Ayverdi). Ilustration 19. Eyüp Sultan Külliye bath. Ilustration 20. Eyüp Sultan Külliye kitchen. Ilustration 21. Eyüp Sultan Külliye graveyard. Ilustration 22. Eyüp Sultan Külliye graveyard. Çandarl brahim Pasha had the fountain built. The faucets on two sides of the courtyard were put in by Bezirgânbafl smail A a. Other than these, many graveyards and tombs are found in the vicinity of the mosque and the medresse. The Grand Vizier Sinan Pasha had the summer palace above the fountain built. Hatice Sultan, the mother of Osman II had a cüzhane (the place where the Koran is read) next to the door of the tomb constructed and If the work undertaken following the demolishing of the mosque, as written in Rûzname, is considered, it becomes apparent that the decision to tear it down was a correct one, after all. The new mosque was constructed on an embankment formed by erecting stakes on four sides. The very bottom formed the actual foundation and the center surrounded by the embankment was filled with rubble. The threshold of the mosque was placed in 1798 (December 18, Tuesday-Recep 13). The construction was finished on Monday, May 26, 1800 and the renovation work on the exterior of the Tomb started immediately. The restorations were finished on October 16, 1800. All this work on külliye carried out at the time of Selim III is very important. When the time came to again renovate the 130

structure, it was realized that the foundation was weak and would not support all that weight in the future. It was necessary to strengthen it and to renew the infrastructure. Thus, the basic area covered by the new mosque became twice that of the previous one. The north wall of the previous mosque was moved to the same level with the rooms of the medresse, adjacent to the minarets, and two pillars were erected where the original wall was located. The inner doors of the minarets were closed up and new doors were constructed externally. This destroyed the organic bond between the tomb, the medresse and the mosque. While the tomb was left outside of the courtyard, the entrances to rooms of the medresse disappeared. Thus, the pyramidal silhouette of the New Mosque, with new traditional Sinan accessories supported by the eight beams that were added to its central dome, rose at the shore of the Golden Horn. A sultan s lodge with a platform stood on the southwest side of the mosque; after Sultan Ahmet Mosque, this was the first time a civil architectural structure would show up next to a mosque. Among the structures of this külliye, the kitchen and the public bath with two divisions, one for women and the other for men, have survived so far having undergone various alterations. The door opening to the exterior courtyard of the külliye has been renewed. On the other hand, structural damage and losses in various parts of the külliye are apparent. Only part of the medresse remains, the open space present is where the bakery once stood and the public bath has disappeared behind the new constructions. REFERENCES Aslanapa, Oktay, Osmanl Mimarisi, Istanbul 1986. Ayvansarayî, Hadikat ül Cevâmî, vol. 1, Istanbul, 1281. Ayverdi, E. Hakk, 19. As rda stanbul Haritas, Istanbul, 1958. Ayverdi, E. Hakk, Osmanl Mimarisinde Fatih Devri (885-886/1451-1481) stanbul, 1989, (second edition) vol. III-IV. Barkan, Ö. Lütfi, Muhâsebe-i Evkaaf- Hazret-i Eyyüb ül- Ensârî, Aleyhirahmet il-bârî, ktisat Fakültesi Mecmuas 23, C. 1-2, Istanbul, 1962/3, p. 373-379. Cantay, Gönül, Anadolu Selçuklu ve Osmanl Darüflflifalar, Ankara, 1992. Erünsal, E. smail, Eyüp Sultan Camii Kütüphanesi, T.D.V. slâm Ansiklopedisi, vol. 12, Istanbul 1995, p. 9, kol. 2-3. Evliya Çelebi, Seyahatname, vol. 1, Istanbul, 1314. Fatih Mehmet II. Vakfiyeleri, Ankara, 1938. (Vak flar Umum Müdürlü ü Neflriyat ) (t pk bas m). Eyice, Semavî, Eyüp Sultan Külliyesi, T.D.V. slâm Ansiklopedisi, vol. 12, stanbul, 1995, pp. 9-12, kol. 1-3. stanbul fiehir Rehberi, Istanbul, 1934. Kara(Ensârî), Fahrünisa, Eyüp, Dünden Bugüne stanbul Ansiklopedisi, Istanbul, 1994, vol. 3,5, pp. 245-250. fiehsuvaro lu, B. Nuri, Türk stanbul da T p Ö reniminin 500. Y ldönümü, stanbul T p Fakültesi Mecmuas, XXXIV, Istanbul, 1971, pp. 831-84 The Eyyüb Sultan Külliye, as a symbol of the togetherness of the Prophet Muhammad and Eyyüb El Ensâri who came from holy lands and died for Islam, always has been a special place of pilgrimage in the Turkish Islam world. 131