Page 37 - The Age of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent

rated from their manuscripts. The few that still retain their
original texts have no colophons, with the exception of the
rare hexagonal example that encloses a sancak Koran tran-
scribed in 1570/1571 (see 21). This Koran provides the key
for dating not only the jeweled gold and jade bindings, but
also those containers and vessels that employ the same mate-
rials and techniques.
The experimentation that took place during the age of Sü-
leyman is clearly evident in a unique tortoiseshell binding
made for an imperial album (see 49). Employing the tech-
nique and materials applied to later furnishings and to such
architectural components as doors and shutters, it proves that
the tradition of using thin plaques of tortoiseshell underlaid
with gold leaf was established in the 1560s.
büyük beyze
kücük beyze

Tugras, Fermans, and Vakfiyes Fig. 13. The components of the Ottoman tugra

The most outstanding symbol of the Ottoman sultan's author-
ity was his imperial tugra, which was affixed to all official
documents, including fermans, vakfiyes, and correspondence; mat, with obvious changes in the sere to accommodate the
it was also carved on his seals and stamped on the coins name of each new sultan, that became the prototype for fu-
minted during his reign. Each sultan chose his personal tugra ture Ottoman tugras.
immediately after his accession and used the same format It has been pointed out that the word §ah following both
throughout his life. Süleyman and Selim was not a title but part of their names.
Since the word tugra is of Oguz Turkish origin, it is Selim I's tugras as §ehzade and sultan read "Selim§ah,"
thought that the tradition of validating documents with the which appears to be his complete name, similar to those of
ruler's name or signature was practiced as early as the ninth his brothers, §ahm§ah and Alem§ah. The tugras of Süley-
or tenth century, and passed on to later Turkish dynasties, in- man's sons, Bayezid and Mehmed, give the name of their
cluding the Seljuks and the Mamluks. Although the use of a father as "Suleyman§ah." Selim II, however, used only "Se-
tugra was an ancient practice, the type devised by the Otto- lim" on his tugras as a §ehzade, but employed "Selim§ah"
mans was unique and remained unchanged for some six after he became sultan, most likely to conform the wording
hundred years. with that of his father. The word §ah denoting a title appears
The Ottoman tugra (fig. 13) has four basic components: the in the tugra of Murad III, which reads "§ah Murad bin Se-
sere, the lower portion with stacked letters bearing the name lim§ah. . . ." 20 This word, both as a title and as part of the
of the owner; the tug, three vertical projections at the top name, disappears from the tugras after Murad III.
joined by S-shaped strokes; the beyze, two concentric circular In the Ottoman court it was the ni§ana, the chancellor in
extensions on the left, the inner one called kücük (small) the Divan-i Hümayun, who was responsible for affixing the
beyze and the outer büyük (large) beyze; and the kol, a sultan's tugra on documents. After the contents of the docu-
curved stroke extending from the sere into the beyze. With ments were checked and approved, they were given to the
the exception of two strokes added to balance the tug, all ni§anci, who centered the tugra at the top. In later periods he
four components were integral parts of the name, composed was assisted by a tugrake§ who was chosen for his expertise
of letters rendered in a highly elaborate and decorative in rendering the complicated letters.
manner. Tugras were also used by §ehzades assigned to sancaks;
The earliest Ottoman tugra belongs to Sultan Orhan and is they had their own ni§ancis in their courts, and many re-
dated 1324, the first year of his reign. The sere reads "Orhan tained the same format after ascending the throne. The tugras
bin Osman"; the tug and the beyze had not yet evolved. In of Süleyman drawn when he served as governor in the 1510s
21
the tugras of the ensuing sultans the title Han was added as are identical to those he used after he became sultan. The
well as the phrase "el-muzaffer daima" (the eternally victo- same consistency appears in the tugras of his father and his
rious), which led to the development of the tug, beyze, and son, Selim I and Selim II. 22 A related type was used by the
kol. The most harmonious use of the basic components ap- §eyhulislams, grand vezirs, vezirs, and governors when vali-
pear in the tugras of Süleyman (fig. 14), which read "Süley- dating their documents. These signatures are similar to those
mancah bin §elim§ah Han el-muzaffer daima/' It is this for- used by the sultans and §ehzades, except that they are gener-

36 Fig. 14. The reading of Sultan Siileyman's tugra