The Ottomans / Turkish-Islamic Art in Pre-Ottoman Anatolia

‘They developed an artistic style rooted in the heritage of the many civilisations of Asia and Anatolia.’

Having established political uniformity in Anatolia, the Seljuq sultans increased their building activities and developed trade. Having secured the routes, they lived in luxury palaces built with the aim of living in an Earthly Paradise. A Turkish-Islamic state, the Anatolian Seljuqs developed an artistic style rooted in the heritage of the many civilisations of Asia and Anatolia, and inspired by contemporary as well as Byzantine culture. During their rule, from the second half of the 5th / 11th to the early 8th / 14th centuries the Anatolian Seljuqs built monuments to suit their religious beliefs as well as their social aspirations. These included mosques, türbes (tombs), madrasas (religious schools), hammams (bathhouses), hans (caravanserai), and bridges.

NameDynastyDetailsJustification
Karatay MadrasaHegira 649 / AD 1251–2Anatolian SeljuqKonya, TurkeyAn important example of a madrasa with a covered courtyard. Today it serves as a tile museum.
Ağzıkara Han (caravanserai)Covered section: hegira Sha'ban 628 / June 1231; courtyard: hegira Sha'ban 637 / February 1240Anatolian SeljuqAğzıkarahan, Aksaray, TurkeyOne of the most important hans (caravanserai) on the silk route in Anatolia.
Prayer niche (mihrab)About Hegira 669 / AD 1270Seljuqs of Rum (Anatolian Seljuq)Museum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum
Berlin, Germany
A good example of the tile-mosaic technique developed by the Anatolian Seljuqs.