{"id":577,"date":"2018-05-11T11:15:39","date_gmt":"2018-05-11T10:15:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/courtauld.org.uk\/crossingfrontiers\/?page_id=577"},"modified":"2019-01-24T22:14:58","modified_gmt":"2019-01-24T22:14:58","slug":"sahibye-medresi","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.courtauld.ac.uk\/crossingfrontiers\/crossing-frontiers\/turkey\/kayseri\/sahibye-medresi\/","title":{"rendered":"Sahibye Medresi"},"content":{"rendered":"
Patricia Blessing<\/strong><\/h5>\n

The Sahibiye Medrese, located in the centre of Kayseri close to the citadel, was founded by \u1e62\u0101\u1e25ib \u2018A\u1e6d\u0101 Fakhr al-D\u012bn Ali in 665\/1267-8.[1]<\/a> It has been suggested that the patron (or his architects) created a personal version of the style of Konya that was then spread to other locations in Anatolia, most notably to Sivas. In the Sahibiye Medrese in Kayseri, however, this transposition of a personal style based on the monuments of Konya did not take place. Rather than reflecting an imported style, this monument was modelled on other local monuments, most notably the Huand Hatun<\/a> complex (634\/1236-37), with its minimal carved decoration and exclusive use of stone for construction. Like many thirteenth-century madrasas, that is buildings intended for the training of scholars of Islamic law and theology, in Central Anatolia, the Sahibiye is built on a four-iwan plan with an open courtyard. Some of the lateral rooms are now closed off and used as stores. The portal, in the central axis, features a muqarnas niche above the doorway, surrounded by bands with geometric carving. Otherwise, little decoration has been preserved, on the fa\u00e7ade or in the interior.<\/p>\n

The foundation inscription is carved in two lines on a rectangular marble slab above the muqarnas niche. In addition to the foundation inscription a section of \u1e25ad\u012bth<\/em>, referring to the importance of fiqh<\/em> in the practice of Islam, appears just above the entrance to the monument.[2]<\/a> Inscriptions from the Qur\u2019an have not been preserved.<\/p>\n

The decoration is a first hint at the persistence of local styles throughout the thirteenth century, in which some attempts at a stylistic unification were made, and their re-emergence immediately after the decline of the Seljuks\u2019 central rule began following the Mongol conquest of Anatolia in 1243. The patron of the structure, \u1e62\u0101\u1e25ib \u02bfA\u1e6d\u0101 Fakhr al-D\u012bn \u02bfAl\u012b, was a central figure during Mongol rule in Anatolia in the second half of the thirteenth century, from the 1250s until his death in 1285. He was one of several officials of the Selj\u016bq court who managed to align themselves with the new overlords, and effectively ruled Anatolia by negotiating with the Mongols, on the one hand, and maintaining appearances for a largely powerless Selj\u016bq sultan, on the other hand. This political shift entailed profound changes in patronage; \u1e62\u0101\u1e25ib \u2018A\u1e6d\u0101 Fakhr al-D\u012bn \u2018Al\u012b \u2018s intervention in Konya is symptomatic of this transformation, while his patronage in Kayseri is less prominent.<\/p>\n

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Interactive Plan<\/h4>\n
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Image Gallery<\/h4>\n