Page 85 - The Age of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent

or domes. Mountains appearing in the background and
within the walled enclosure suggest that the region was con-
siderably rugged.
In Nasuh's depiction the city of Lepanto, with its natural
and manmade fortifications, is most impressive and appears
impenetrable. Conquered by the Ottomans in 1499, it was
zealously guarded through the centuries because its strategic
location and safe harbor were essential for the defense of the
Mediterranean.
Nasuh's most elaborate work is the Beyan-i Menazil-i Sefer-i
Irakeyn (Descriptions of the halting stations during the Irak-
eyn campaign), originally entitled Mecmu-i Menazil It is de-
voted to Süleyman's 1534-1536 campaign to Iraq and Iran,
called the two Iraqs, or the Irakeyn, in Turkish (Irak-i Acem
with its capital at Hamadan and Irak-i Arab with its capital at
Baghdad). Completed around 1537, the work contains 128
paintings that depict the cities and sites where the army
halted. It is almost a traveler's guide to these regions, repre-
senting their geographic conditions, mountains and rivers,
flora and fauna, and all the major monuments in the towns.
The first painting in the volume shows Istanbul (39a),
where the campaign originated. Spread to double folios, it
places the section then called Istanbul on the right and Calata
on the left, separated by the Golden Horn and surrounded by
the Bosporus and the Sea of Marmara. A small portion of
Üsküdar appears on the upper left, next to the famous Kiz
Kulesi, the lighthouse also known as the Tower of Leander.
The representation of Istanbul, with its monuments ren-
dered both frontally and from the air, is the most magnificent
painting in the volume. It is also the earliest known Ottoman
illustration of the capital. This extraordinary painting repre-
sents the surrounding rivers, hills, gardens, and orchards as
well as all the major structures, each carefully and accurately
drawn. The Calata section is enclosed by walls and towers,
the largest being the famous Calata Tower built by the Gen-
oese in the fourteenth century. Foreign diplomatic and com-
mercial missions were located in this area, which is subdi-
vided into districts by additional fortifications.
The Istanbul section, also enclosed by walls and towers, is 39a. View of Istanbul from the Beyan-i Menazil-i Sefer-i Irakeyn of Matrakci
T. 5964,
fols.
8b-9a)
Nasuh, c.
1537
(Istanbul Université Kütüphanesi,
much larger and more densely filled with all types of struc-
tures. The Topkapi Palace with its own fortified walls appears
at the top; the painter has clearly identified the three court-
yards and their entrance gates. Other structures around the
Topkapi Palace include the Aya Sofya (Hagia Sophia), the
sixth-century Byzantine church converted into a mosque after
the conquest of Istanbul; and the At Meydam, the hippo-
drome, with its ancient obelisks, colonnades, and serpentine
column. Below are the Covered Bazaar, the Aqueduct of Val-
ens, the complex built by Bayezid II, the Old Palace enclosed
by a wall, and the Mosque of Mehmed II. The districts of the
city and their monuments are explicitly illustrated, including
the Yedikule quarter on the lower right with its famous
seven-towered fortress. 75

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