Allegiance\, Property\, and Space: Monumental In
scriptions in thirteenth-century Anatolia
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\n(Workshop paper is available to Stanford affiliates upon request by email to abbasiprog ram@stanford.edu)
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\nThe scarcity of written so urces concerning Seljuk Anatolia has emphasized the focus on the historica l content\, rather than other aspects of monumental inscriptions more stro ngly than in studies on other regions and periods of the Islamic world.
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\nHistoric inscriptions do provide essential informa tion on a building\, especially when no other sources are available. The o nly known record of the life of Hibātallāh al-Barujirdī\, the patron of the Buruciye Medrese in Sivas (670 A.H. / 1271-72 CE) are the inscription s on the building he commissioned. The foundation inscription provides bas ic information such as the name of the founder and the date of constructio n\, whereas extracts from the madrasa&rsquo\;s deed of endowment offer a r are glimpse of this otherwise lost document. The Qur&rsquo\;anic inscripti ons on the Buruciye Medrese\, however\, are placed in the most conspicuous places of the building and carved in larger script than those of historic al content. Thus\, the message of the founder&rsquo\;s piety rather than o f his identity shifts to the foreground. In the Yakutiye Medrese in Erzuru m (710 A.H. / 1310 CE)\, the deed of endowment is recorded in a lengthy in scription\, reflecting the patron&rsquo\;s intent of connecting the buildi ng to its surroundings and to his memory.
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\nIn a d etailed analysis of the inscription programs of these two buildings\, this paper aims at reshaping approaches to epigraphy in medieval Anatolia. A n uanced understanding of the relationship between content\, form\, placemen t\, and calligraphy of these inscriptions can open insights into their mea ning and conception that go beyond the content of their text.
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\nPatricia Blessing completed her PhD in the Department of Art and Archaeology at Princeton University in 2012. She studies the a rt and architecture of the Islamic world\, focusing on trans-cultural inte ractions in the Middle Ages. Her dissertation\, Reframing the Lands of Rū m &ndash\; Architecture and Style in Eastern Anatolia (1240-1320 CE)\, inv estigates the relationship between patronage\, architecture\, and style pa ying close attention to mobility fostered by trans-imperial networks stret ching from Anatolia to Central Asia. In addition to her experience as an a rt historian\, she has excavated in Syria\, Uzbekistan\, and Turkey. Patri cia completed undergraduate work in Near Eastern Studies\, art history\, a nd comparative literature in Geneva (Switzerland) and Bamberg (Germany)\, and received her M.A. from Princeton in 2009. Currently\, she is a Visitin g Scholar in the Abbasi Program. Starting in the winter term 2013\, she wi ll be teaching as a lecturer in the Art and Art History department at Stan ford.
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\nCo-sponsored by the Abbasi Program in Islamic Studies
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DTEND;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20120524T051500 DTSTAMP:20130618T073702Z DTSTART;VALUE=DATE-TIME:20120524T121500 LOCATION:Encina Hall West\, Room 208616 Serra Street\, Stanford\, CA 94305 SUMMARY:2012 Islamic Studies Workshop Series: Islamic Art &\; Architectu re - Patricia Blessing UID:20130618T093702CEST-3dNOMRspLc@171.67.40.181 BEGIN:VALARM ACTION:DISPLAY TRIGGER;VALUE=DURATION;RELATED=START:-PT0H15M0S END:VALARM END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR