Sufictic Figurations in Eastern Black Sea Mosques

Abstract

Wall paintings starting from the Hun Turks to Islam in the 8th century and then reaching Anatolia by the Seljuks in the 11th century are among the important elements of Turkish-Islamic art. These paintings, which are mostly seen as interior decorations, reached their most active days with the Westernization movement in the Ottoman period, firstly found in the capital Istanbul and moved to Anatolia by the notables (ayan) in the 19th century. At the end of the century, it was able to reach rural village mosques in the countryside. Here it is seen that religious orders also come into play. Thus, depictions of nature and landscapes, which were processed on religious and civil architecture, especially in Istanbul and other important Ottoman cities, diversified and enriched with sūfī symbols. Now, on the walls of the mosque, accessories such as the crown of the sect dervishes and items belonging to dervish dowries such as zulfiqar (the sword of Hazrat Ali), battle-ax, salpinx and kashkul (beggar’s bowl) are also started to be depicted. In addition to these, other symbolic concepts that are thought to be mystical, such as the scale, liwāu-l-hamd (the flag of the Prophet), the flag, the rosary, the ship of the Ashāb al-Kahf (people of the cave; the sleepers) are also depicted. Thus, wall paintings turned into an artistic tool that reflects the mystical views of the founder-master-community trio and conveys the messages of the sects they belong to. In this article, the descriptions of the objects that have an important place in the Sūfī worlds of these religious orders, which are engraved on the walls of the mosques built in the villages in the Eastern Black Sea Region, are explained and an evaluation has been made with similar examples in other Islamic geographies, especially in Anatolia.