AQ.054 Selimiye Camii at Konya

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Creator

Denis Baly

Creation Year

January 1966

Image ID

AQ.054

Alternate Identifier

B42.054

Subcollection

AQ: Konya Region of Turkey

Abstract

A closer study of one of the squinches supporting the dome. Quranic calligraphy has been used to encompass a rosette. Arabesque calligraphy is commonly used in a geometric manner to suggest multiplicity and unity. The mosaic has been tailored to fit the unique shape of the squinch. -CK

Description

The architect of the mosque, Mimar Sinan, was the chief Ottoman architect from the era of Suleiman to Murad II, and other great buildings such as the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne and Suleyman Mosque in Istanbul I are also his work. Towards the end of his career (between 1566 and 1574) he erected the Selimiye in Konya near the convent of the whirling dervishes. The Selimiye is quite traditional compared to his previous works and features a central dome on pendentives; the interior squinches feature lavish arabesque mosaics and the exterior squinches are adorned with stalactite muqarnas. The square plan has two characteristic side-aisles leading to a single apse that contains the mihrab. The Portico lies behind seven elegent arches. -CK

References

Lockerbie, John. "Arabic / Islamic Geometry 01." Catnaps, https://www.catnaps.org/islamic/geometry.html

Stierlin, Henri, and Anne Stierlin. "Turkey, from the Selçuks to the Ottomans." Köln: Taschen, 1998.

Image Notes

Creation date unknown. Photograph processed December 1966. Formerly catalogued as B42.054. Notes written on the slide or index: Seref et-Tin Camii.

Image Format

35 mm slide

Geographic Reference

Konya, Turkey