Page 119 - The Age of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent

the Rumiyan and Aceman corps, were equally divided into in the production of manuscripts.
masters and apprentices, and headed by Mehrned Bosna Although silver and gold had been fashioned into objects
(Bosnia), the only artist whose works are identifiable. 15 since antiquity, the use of zinc was unusual. It was employed
Mehmed, who headed the seventy-eight-member gold- in Safavid Iran during the early sixteenth century, as ob-
smiths 1605, is not mentioned in the register drawn the next served in a group of elaborate, gold-inlaid and gem-encrusted
year, suggesting that he was no longer living in 1606. 16 It is bottles, jugs, and bowls brought back from Tabriz by Selim
not known when Mehmed registered in the society of the I. 20 The production of zinc vessels seems to have stopped in
goldsmiths, since the documents between 1566 and 1596 are Iran after 1514, and the fascination with this metal disap-
missing. He was, however, an established master and the peared as quickly as it appeared. In the Ottoman court the
head of the group when he made the gold bookbinding for same tradition, obviously inspired by the Safavid examples,
the collected poems of Murad III in 1588, which he signed survived until the mid-seventeenth century. 21 The material,
"Usta [master] Mehmed serzergeran [chief goldsmith]/' His mined in India and China, must have arrived in western Asia
signature appears on two other works produced for Murad around 1500 and been thought rare and exotic enough to be
III: a casket made for the Prophet's mantle dated 1592/1593 fashioned into court objects. Since zinc lacks strength and tar-
and a lock and key made for the Kaaba in 1593/1594. The nishes easily, its novelty eventually wore off. The metal was
artist is thought to have started working in the court during better suited for producing brass by combining it with copper.
the reign of Selim II in the 1570s, his last work being the Copper and copper alloys, that is brass and bronze, were
crown presented to Stephen Bocskay in 1605. generally reserved for more prosaic objects, and were fre-
The payroll registers indicate that precious objects had been quently employed in architectural decorations, such as doors,
sponsored by the court since the reign of Bayezid II and that fireplaces, and domes. Using the same techniques as those
the artists were organized according to technique. Selim I applied to precious metals, they were also tinned and gilded.
promoted the artists, who were further supported by Süley- Tinning, which produced a protective coating against the poi-
man. Even though there was a decrease in membership in sonous effects of copper, was also a decorative feature, at-
the three major societies—goldsmiths, gemstone carvers, and tempting to simulate silver. Gilded copper (called tombak) was
gold inlayers—between 1526 and 1566, many more groups extremely widespread and primarily an aesthetic preference,
evolved during these years, dividing the Ehl-i Hiref into even simulating gold.
more highly specialized departments. Inlaid brasses, which were popular in the thirteenth and
The documents reveal that Süleyman rewarded his court fourteenth centuries throughout the Islamic world, appear to
artists with cash bonuses and, occasionally, kaftans. One of have lost favor in later years. Only one silver-inlaid brass ves-
these ledgers, drawn around 1535, lists 149 men who re- sel is known to have been produced for the Ottoman court, a
ceived a total 225,450 akçes (each averaging 1,500 akçes, the bowl made for Murad II in the fifteenth century. 22 The shape,
equivalent of four to six months' salary) in addition to more style of decoration, and technique of the piece indicate it was
than thirty garments. 17 Another document lists 104,400 akçes manufactured in Mamluk Syria or Egypt, possibly as a gift to
and ten garments presented to 76 artists during the twelve- the sultan. 23
18
month period between 1555 and 1556. The artists in return Gemstone carvers fashioned jade, rock crystal, and other
gave their best to the sultan, offering him their most beauti- materials (including amber, jet, and chalcedony) into objects,
fully made wares. 19 and cut turquoise, emerald, ruby, and other stones for en-
24
The artists combined a variety of techniques and materials crustation. The gems were frequently left in their natural
when producing their pieces, obviously collaborating with state or cabochon-cut, sometimes rose-cut, grouped according
their colleagues in other societies. Silver, gold, and zinc to size, and affixed to the pieces. Pearls, coral, diamonds, and
(called tutya) were the favored metals for imperial wares, other gems such as amethysts and sapphires were seldom
which were shaped by casting, hammering from sheet, or used in the sixteenth century, the Ottoman taste of the period
spinning. Their surface decoration was produced by working showing a strong preference for bluish-green, red, and green
both sides (chased and incised on the front and repoussé stones. In some cases transparent gems, such as diamonds,
from the back) and the backgrounds of the motifs were en- were placed over red or green foils to produce a desired
hanced by hatching, crosshatching, or ring matting, using color. The primary purpose of encrusting objects with gems
chisels or circular punches. Frequently the pieces were gilded; was to create a coloristic effect; faceting, light refraction, and
inlaid with gold, niello, and enamels; and encrusted with physical perfection of the gemstones were totally ignored. The
gems. Some were further embellished with filigree panels, overall effect is not unlike manuscript illumination or enam-
gold-inlaid and gem-encrusted jade plaques or rock-crystal eling, producing a brilliant and colorful surface.
components lined with illuminated paper sheets, indicating Both the goldsmiths and gemstone carvers worked closely
collaboration with painters. Since the metalworkers made the with the gold inlayers who created elaborate scrolls bearing
stamps used on leather bookbindings, they also participated leaves and blossoms. The artists employed two distinct types

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