The Ottoman state was founded by Turkish tribes in northwestern Anatolia in 1299
The Ottoman state was founded by Turkish tribes in northwestern Anatolia in 1299 and became an empire in 1453 after the momentous conquest of Constantinople. Stretching across Asia, Europe, and Africa, the Empire was vast and long lived, lasting until 1922 when the monarchy was abolished in Turkey.
The Ottoman Turks were renowned for their architecture, building a large number of public buildings, mosques, and caravanserais or roadside inns for travelers, as well as for their traditions of calligraphy and miniature painting. They were also renowned for their decorative arts including carpet weaving, jewelry making, paper marbling, and their characteristic Iznik ware ceramics.
Architecture
Ottoman mosques and other architecture first emerged in the cities of Bursa and Edirne in the 14th and 15th centuries, developing from earlier Seljuk Turk architecture, with additional influences from Byzantine, Persian, and Islamic Mamluk traditions. Sultan Mehmed II would later even fuse European traditions in his rebuilding programs at Istanbul in the 19th century. Byzantine styles as seen in the Hagia Sophia served as particularly important models for Ottoman mosques, such as the mosque constructed by Sinan. Building reached its peak in the 16th century when Ottoman architects mastered the technique of building vast inner spaces surmounted by seemingly weightless yet incredibly massive domes, and achieved perfect harmony between inner and outer spaces, as well as articulated light and shadow. They incorporated vaults, domes, square dome plans, slender corner minarets, and columnsinto their mosques, which became sanctuaries of transcendently aesthetic and technical balance.
Kulliye, a complex of buildings centered around a mosque and managed within a single institution, became a particular focus of imperial patronage. Turkish building projects in Constantinople – later renamed Istanbul – prioritized these complexes focusing on a mosque that combined religious, funerary, educational, and financial institutions.
Despite variations, Ottoman architecture remained fairly uniform throughout the empire. Examples of the high classical period can be found in Turkey, the Balkans, Hungary, Egypt, Tunisia, and Algeria, where mosques, bridges, fountains, and schools were built. A particularly fine example of an Ottoman mosque is the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne, built between 1568 and 1574. Flanked by four tall minarets and crowned by a monumental dome, the mosque also has a remarkable interior, which is lit by a multitude of tiny windows that allow the tiled walls to sparkle in the interplay of shadow and light .
Selimiye Mosque, Edirne
Commissioned by Sultan Selim II and was built by famous Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan between 1569 and 1575, the Selimiye Mosque was considered by Sinan to be his masterpiece and is one of the highest achievements of Islamic architecture.
Miniature Painting
Ottoman miniature painting, which was usually used to illustrate manuscripts or in al