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The essence of the Near East can be found in the
old walled city of Lefkoşa and the Selimiye
Mosque is the jewel in its crown.
U Ğ U R KARAGÖZLÜ describes its rare charm
L E F K O Ş A
‘Selimiye’s harmonious proportions and beautiful ornaments
embody the essence of the Near East’
L
ef ko 5 A
T
he peculiar charm possessed by the remnants of the Latin East, that East which knew the rule of crusading lord and magnificence of Frankish mer chants, is of a rare and subtle kind and can be found in Lefkoça (Nicosia), where Gothic architecture blends with Turkish beneath a M editerranean sky. It lies in courts of ruined castles overgrown with deep green cypresses, in date palms rearing their stately crowns above some abbey’s traceried cloisters, and in emblazoned flamboyant mansions of golden sandstone warmed and illuminated by the glow of the eastern sun.Within the walled city of Lefko§a is a medley of mosques, medieval palaces and Turkish konaklar (mansions), with Gothic turrets and Turkish minarets. And in the middle is the city’s most arresting monu ment, Selimiye Mosque, once the cathedral of the Lusignan kings and now the chief mosque of Northern Cyprus. It was named in honour of Sultan Selim II in whose reign the Ottomans conquered Cyprus.
Harmonious in its proportions and beau tiful in its ornament, this glorious building dominates the old town, while its twin minarets, rising slender and graceful, embody the essence of the Near East.
This is the finest surviving monument of the Latin kingdom of the House of Lusignans, on a greater scale than any other ancient building on the island and one of the most remarkable of its period in the Levant. Begun as a French Gothic cathedral, St Sophia, it was based on high-pitched roofs and gables and was completed under the influence of the Levant where the flat roof is universal. In the palmy days of the Lusignans, when coronations and other great ceremonies were held in the cath edral, there was no doubt a spacious close or parvis extending on all sides of the building so that its stately west end and beautiful porch or galilee could be seen to their fullest advantage.
The date of the foundation of Selimiye is still uncertain, the chronicles varying be tween 1193 and 1209, but it was not con secrated until 1326. This awe-inspiring medieval building was built on the same design as Notre-Dame in Paris, with altera tions to suit local conditions. Most of the
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structural detail is the work of French artists who came to the island in the train of King St Louis of France who wintered in Cyprus on his way to Egypt at the head of the ill-fated Seventh Crusade. He was accompanied by architects looking for the opportunity to work on big building pro jects. They were welcomed by Archbishop Montaigu of Cyprus, the driving force behind the cathedral’s construction.
Unhappily, the lure of the crusade caught Montaigu in his .toils, for when St Louis sailed in 1249, he accompanied him and died in Louis’s camp in Egypt the following year.
While the building was still incomplete, it was damaged by an earthquake in 1267 and it suffered again in 1303 when another seismic disturbance shook the city. These two disasters probably helped to delay the building’s completion and it was not until Giovanni del Conte became archbishop of the island that fresh energy was applied to the enterprise. The seven years after his arrival in Lefkoça in 1319 saw steady pro gress and by the end of that time the nave, western façade, the lower portions of the towers and a splendid marble rood-screen were finished. The consecration ceremony was eventually held on November 5, 1326.
Although damaged by the Genoese in 1373, the Mamelukes in 1425 and earth quakes in 1491 and 1547, the mosque remains the most interesting monument in the city. The western façade is the most imposing architectural feature and the details of the galilee or narthex are beautiful and deserve more attention than they usually receive. The splayed jambs of the central doorway are enriched with cipollino marble in an original way. Although some of the sculptured mouldings have been par tially hidden with gypsum, there is enough of the detail of foliage and roses and of dog’s- tooth ornament to reveal the fine quality of the medieval designers’ work.
A section of the decorations over the central doorway on the west of the building shows the four moulded arches over the door with foliage and carved figurines of saints, kings and queens. This fine piece of Gothic art is the best in this part of the world. As a whole, the west front shows marked Italian influence and the lack of
The quiet centre of religious life, with the
purity of design and whitewashed walls and
columns making it an ideal place for prayer
and contemplation
T U R Q U O I S E 69
Taha Toros Arşivi
