x. completed project: Arap Camii (Istanbul) (türkçe)

Arap Camii

Documentation of Latin paintings in a former Dominican cloister in Pera

Location

Arap Camii, situated in the municipality of Beyoğlu, was once a Dominican church in medieval Pera, then a suburb of Constantinople on the northern shore of the Golden Horn.

History

	Arap Camii: the choir from the Genoese Church of SS. Paolo e Domenico

As a Genoese colony, Pera flourished thanks to the privileges granted by Michael VIII Paleologos to its powerful maritime parent republic in return for its support against Latin supremacy in the naval agreement of 1216. Under control of the homeland, during the 14th century Pera developed into a nearly autonomous city behind fortifications of its own that served-not least-to protect it from its Venetian rivals. On a land-grant formerly belonging to a Byzantine church, the Dominicans founded a cloister in a prominent position on the enclosed piazza; the cemetery of the Genoese colony was located here as well. A date for the construction of the present church remains in controversy; the years between 1225 and 1230 appear too early. It would seem more likely that the structure represents a reconstruction during the first quarter of the 14th century, for in 1307 the Dominicans in Pera had incorporated an earlier convent of their Order then forced out of the Old City in Constantinople. After the Capitulation in 1453 the Ottomans granted the Dominicans a grace period lasting until 1475, after which they eventually turned the church over to the Moslem immigrants fleeing from Granada for use as a mosque. The popular designation of Arap Camii, or Mosque of the Arabs, harks back to a 16th-century legend without historical basis; folklore would have it that the mosque was built here during an Arabic siege in the eighth century. 

Objectives

On the south wall and in the vault of the former choir are areas of Latin painting that first came to light when more recent plastering was dislodged by the strong earthquake in 1999. Aside from enriching the inventory of rare examples of Christian wall painting in Istanbul, these examples hold a special significance in that they also relate to the conflict that was in play between the genres of Italy and of Byzantium. In this case it is contradictions between the art of Genoa and that of Constantinople sifting down into a Latin church set in a Greek Orthodox environment. One goal of the research is to determine whether this artwork in Pera might not represent a 14th-century synthesis of Italian and Byzantine painting. 

History of Research

	A Genoese patrician: a tombstone from Arap Camii in the Istanbul Archaeological Museum

Its position as a hybrid of Italy and Byzantium-as well as its later conversion into a mosque-may help explain why Arap Camii never received the appreciation it deserved. Save for a short report by R. Ousterhout, the newly found fragments attracted no further attention. Further areas of painting had also been briefly spotted during restoration following World War I (J. Ebersolt). As for the architecture, we are still dependent upon the plans of C. Gurlitt, although grateful for the observations of B. Palazzo and the work of J. Cramer and S. Düll. No thorough architectural analysis has yet been carried out. Greater attention, however, has been paid to the gravestones from Arap Camii that were taken to the Archaeological Museum during the First World War. These some 120 pieces typically bear the coats of arms of Genoese families and constitute a first-rate source for prosopographic and socio-historic studies, providing unusual glimpses into the milieu of the Genoese colony of Pera (E. Dalleggio d'Alessio, S. Düll). 

Previous Activities

	The evangelist Mark: fresco on the choir vault

Despite the challenging spatial arrangement, the fragments of painting were for the first time documented by a photo-survey carried out in May of 2005. 

Results

	The baptism of Christ: fresco on the south wall of the choir

Meanwhile, all the images have been identified; this has led to a partial reconstruction of the original composition. In the vault-in addition to prophets and evangelists-were depicted four Latin church fathers suggesting most a most distinct resemblance to the Genoese commissioners. Identified on opposing walls of the high choir is a life-cycle of Christ, with the scenes of the birth and the baptism preserved. Because the painting reflects elements of Paleologue style, the work has been ascribed to a Greek workshop of the 14th century. A tentative hypothesis is that the Arap Camii represented a milieu characterized by a gradual process of acculturation. Those who commissioned it, personages to be sought in the Genoese colony, had adjusted to their Byzantine surroundings and were susceptible to inspiration on a Greek slant. The results led to the creation of Levantine artwork characteristic of neither an Italian nor a Byzantine environment.  

Cooperation

Documentation and evaluation were carried out with the cooperation of Haluk Çetinkaya from Mimar Sinan University, Istanbul. 

Further Contact Partners

Dr. Stephan Westphalen
Christliche Archäologie und Byzantinische Kunstgeschichte
Georg August Universität
Nikolausberger Weg 15
D-37073 Göttingen
E-mail: stephan.westphalen@web.de

Bibliography

- J. Cramer - S. Düll, Baubeobachtungen an der Arap Camii in Istanbul, Istanbuler Mitteilungen 35 (1985) 295-321.
- E. Dalleggio d'Alessio, Le Pietre sepolcrali di Arab Camii (Antica Chiesa di S. Paolo a Galata), 1942.
- S. Düll, Die lateinischen Inschriften aus Istanbul vor und nach der osmanischen Eroberung - Vorarbeiten für ein neues Inschriftenprojekt in der Türkei, in: Epigraphik 1982, Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften. Philosophisch-historische Klasse, Denkschriften 169, hrsg. von W. Koch, 1983, 101-118.
- Dies., Unbekannte Denkmäler der Genuesen aus Galata, Istanbuler Mitteilungen 33 (1983) 225-238 und 36 (1986) 245-256.
- J. Ebersolt, Arab Djami et ses sculptures byzantines, in: Mission archéologique de Constantinople 1920 (1921) 38-44.
- C. Gurlitt, Die Baukunst Constantinopels, 1912, 41 f., Taf. LXIII Abb. 11 b.
- B. Palazzo, L'Arap - Djami. Église Saint Paul à Galata, Istanbul 1946.