Ottoman Turkish Miniature Depicting Prophet Jonah

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Discover the Ottoman Art “Prophet Jonah” This “Prophet Jonah” depiction garnished with gold and painted on old paper . · All of our works are hand painted not printed . · Size: 24 X 17 cm · Condition: Very good What is Ottoman Miniature? Ottoman Miniature or Turkish miniature is an art form which can be linked to the Persian miniature tradition, as well as strong Chinese artistic influences. It was a part of the Ottoman Book Arts together with illumination ( tezhip ), calligraphy (hat), marbling paper ( ebru ) and bookbinding ( cilt ). The words taswir or nakish were used to define this art in Ottoman language. The colors were obtained by ground powder pigments mixed with egg-white and later with diluted gum Arabic. The colors were brilliant. Contrasting colors were used side by side with warm colors that remind us of the 20th century avant-garde painters' approach in color selection. The miniatures were not signed. This is partly because of the world view of the tradition that rejected individualism. History of Miniature During the reign of Mehmed II a court workshop called Nakkashane- i Rum, that also functioned as an academy, was founded in Topkapi Palace in Istanbul to create illuminated picture manuscripts for the Sultan and the courtiers. At the beginning of the 16th century, the Herat workshop of Persian miniaturists was closed and its famous instructor Behzad (or Bihzad) went to Tabriz. After the Ottoman emperor Yavuz Sultan Selim briefly conquered Tabriz in 1514, taking many manuscripts back to Istanbul, the "Nakkashane- i Irani" (The Persian Academy of Painting) was founded in Topkapi Palace for imported Persian artists . The artists of these two painting academies formed two different schools of painting: The artists in Nakkashane- i Rum were specialized in documentary books, like the Shehinshahname, showing the public, and to some extent the private, lives of rulers, their portraits and historical events; Shemaili Ali Osman -- portraits of rulers; Surname -- pictures depicting weddings and especially circumcision festivities; Shecaatname- wars commanded by pashas. The artists in Nakkashanei-i Irani" specialized in traditional Persian poetic works like the Shahnameh, the Khamsa of Nizami, containing Layla and Majnun and the Iskendername or Romance of Alexander, Humayunname, animal fables and anthologies. There were also scientific books on botany and animals, alchemy, cosmography and medicine; technical books; love letters; books about astrology and dream reading. The reigns of Suleyman the Magnificent (1520-1566) and especially Selim II (1566-1574) in the second half of 16th century were the golden age of the Ottoman miniature with its own characteristics and authentic qualities. Nakkas Osman was the most important miniature painter of the period, while Nigari developed portrait painting. Matrakci Nasuh was a famous miniature painter during the reigns of Yavuz Sultan Selim and Suleyman the Magnificent. He created a new painting genre called topographic painting. He painted cities, ports and castles without any human figures and combined scenes observed from different viewpoints in one picture. During the reign of Selim II (1566-1574) and Murat III's (1574-1595), the classical Ottoman miniature style was created. The renowned miniature painters of the period were Nakkas Osman, Ali Celebi, Molla Kasim, Hasan Pasa and Lutfi Abdullah. By the end of the 16th century and in the beginning of 17th century, especially in the reign of Ahmed I, single page miniatures intended to be collected in albums or murakkas were popular. They had existed at the time of Murat III, who ordered an album of them from the painter Velijan. In 17th century, miniature painting was also popular among the citizens of Istanbul. Artists under the name of "Bazaar Painters" who worked with other artisans in the bazaars of Istanbul (Carsi Ressamlari - a definition made by Metin And, in "17. Yüzyıl Türk çarşı ... read more

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