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Seyyid Lokman

Introduction

During the second half of the sixteenth century, the Ottoman empire was at its prime in terms of art and production of valuable items due to its political will, cultural environment, and artistic expertise. Among all the precious objects was illustrated manuscripts that are called şehnames, or “king’s book”. Most şehnames consist of Ottoman dynastic history, glorious deeds of the sultans, and miniature paintings, so şehnames can be viewed as symbols of Ottoman imperial culture in book form. In order to create a series of şehnames, the Ottoman sultans employed şehnamecis, official court historians who composed the text. The most important requirement in şehnamecis appointment was literary ability. In the process of producing the şehnames, şehnamecis had to choose their team of calligraphers, painters, gilders, bookbinders, and miniaturists to perfect the work. One of the most prolific şehnamecis of the era is Seyyid Lokman, who was appointed from 1569 to 1596-1597 and collaborated with different artists to create numerous notable works.

Life

Seyyid Lokman was originally from Urmiye in Azerbaijan. In the early stage of his career, Lokman served as a judge, or kadi, in Ottoman courts in the provinces of the empire. As a central administrative hierarchy, he was in charge of the application of Islamic law. Lokman later held a position of private secretary for Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, who worked under Sultan Süleyman from 1565 to 1579 as he was murdered. [6] Sokollu Mehmed Pasha’s influence and patronage can be seen as a key stepping stone in securing his position as şehnameci. Lokman was the third şehnameci, after Arif Çelebi (in office from 1550s to 1563) and Eflatûn-ı Şirvan-ı (c. 1562-1569). [2] He took the office from 1569 after Eflatûn’s death. As a şehnameci, he not only oversaw all aspects of the production of the manuscripts but also looked out for his family members as his fortunes improved. He had a son who joined the elite corps in 1589 with the help of his influence as well as a nephew who was appointed to the scribal corps in 1584. [3] During his final years as şehnameci, Lokman had two assistants, Nutkî and Taliki-zade Mehmed (c. 1591-1600), who helped him in his work. In 1596-1597, Lokman resigned, ending his twenty-five-year career as a head şehnameci in the Ottoman court. Although he was a famous şehnameci who made great achievements, Lokman was also devoted to composing poems. He wrote five Persian verses and one in Turkish. [2]

Work

While Seyyid Lokman held positions as a judge and a personal secretary in his early years his most notable position was as the şahnameci under Sultan Selim II (r. 1566-74). [1] The position of şahnameci came to fruition after the rise in popularity of the şahname genre in the Ottoman empire. The original şahname was an epic poem written by the Iranian poet Ferdevsi Firdawsi about the history and legendary actions of Iranian kings and heroes. [1] This style of story grew in popularity amongst both the elite upper class as well as the literate poor. From this, the position of şahnameci was born under Sultan Suleyman. The title means the writer of şahname, and it equated to the court historian. The original adaption of the şahname genre into Ottoman culture remained in Persian prose though they focused on contemporary events rather than historical or mythical ones [1].  During Lokman’s tenure as şahnameci, the nature of the language itself in the Ottoman Empire was changing. There was a growing preference for prose rather than the verse that was classically used, Persian was replaced by Turkish as the principal language of şahnames.

Seyyid Lokman was appointed the third şahnameci under Sultan Selim II.  He was originally appointed because of his ability to compose Persian couplets in the mesnevi style.[2]. As şahnameci Lokman held both an administrative and creative position, he was responsible for not only composing the text for the projects the sSultan approved, but he was also in charge of coordinating its production. These responsibilities included assembling a team of artisans to make the manuscript ( scribes, painters, illuminators and bookbinders), determining their salary, and gathering the materials needed. [3] He recruited artisans on a project basis, pulling from the corps of artisans who were already employed to work on other projects, making them comparable to freelance artists rather than a permanently hired group. [3]

It was originally believed that the position of şahnameci was a very prestigious and permanently salaried one. When Lokman held the position it had a salary of 30,000 aAspers, and he received project-based raises ranging from 10,000-20,000. [3] However, in reality, his salary did not increase that much due to inflation at the time. [1] The title of şahnameci still held a great deal of weight and prestige though, allowing Lokman to become a member of the Muteferrika.  The position of şahnameci was originally believed to be a full-time appointment, but its permanency has come into question because there was no permanent studio dedicated to Lokman, and because of his second source of income as the Financial Director or Defterdar of the Muteferrika crorps [1].

When Grand Vizier Mehmed Sokollu Paşa died in 1579 Seyyid Lokman was left to find a new patron for his work. He attempted to gain the patronage of other wealthy members of the court. These efforts were reflected in his work - he would not only write about the sultan in a favorable light but also his potential patrons, emphasizing the contributions and positive characteristics of each. [3] Lokman’s need for a patron shows how the elite and wealthy shape the image and history of the Ottoman empire that left behind.

Influence

Seyyid Lokman was highly influential for historical accounts written following his accounts, yet his work was inspired by foreign and past sources as well. Lokman looked to European histories such as a work by Poalo Giovio, called Elogia vivorum bellica virtute illustrium, to help him construct an Ottoman account of Sultan genealogy leading back to the Prophet. [4] The paintings featured in Lokman’s works, including in the Sema’ilname, show a direct correlation to the European accounts because of the progression and differentiation of people of power. Also, both the European and Ottoman accounts by Lokman look to ancient historical examples for physiognomy inspiration, meaning both empires used facial features to differentiate ethnicities in paintings. The Sema’ilname was a work produced by Lokman that ultimately was made for the sSultan in power at the time, known as Murad III.

Drawing from Ottoman content rather than foreign content, Lokman only included Ottoman Sultans in the Sema’ilname, to show the lineage and importance of Islamic leaders and them only. [4] This is an aspect that differs from the European examples because they typically included leaders from external geographies, and even Ottoman sultans. Additionally, Lokman uses past Islamic historical accounts, such as the şahname, as resources to model the new stories after. Specifically, he uses these works to help portray the Sultans as military and political heroes, which comes from the şahname writings [4].

Seyyid Lokman’s work and position inspired historical accounts to follow in Islamic and foreign cultures. Lokman’s work as an appointed historian was influential because of his hand in shaping the Ottoman style of historical accounts [4]. The use of both past and foreign ideas created a new Ottoman style, which gave examples of how to or how not to document history. European empires in the 16th and 17th centuries were familiar with Lokman as a historian and used this as a model to create a historian job position in their own empires. [2] Moreover, Lokman’s historical accounts were both for history and propaganda, which was influenced by past Islamic accounts influenced the way historians in the future accounted histories [2].

Conclusion

In the later 16th century, Ottoman sultans were less physically active. Throughout Lokman’s career, Selim II and Murad III (r. 1574-95) had ceased to go to war with their armies. [3] Therefore, the increasing impossibility of depicting the Ottoman sultan as a war hero started to undermine the position of şehnameci. After Lokman’s appointment as şehnameci, there were only two successors left: Taliki-zade (c. 1592-1600) and Hasan Hukmi (1601) respectively. [1] After them, the post of şehnameci was terminated.  Although the post only existed for about 50 years, the five successive şehnamecis produced fifteen notable history works in total. Lokman was the most prolific one who composed ten. [3]

Seyyid Lokman was truly a treasure to not only the Ottoman empire but also the modern world. He played a key role in the court since he held an administrative and also creative position. Lokman also oversaw all aspects of production, from composition of the text to presentation of the final projects, showing his competency. He was responsible to gather materials and all the artisans to work on the manuscripts and perfect them. Aside from managing the creation of şahname, Lokman later became a member of the Muteferrika. On top of that, taking the inspirations of historical works from Europe and combining the idea with his own, Lokman’s work and position inspired historical accounts. He shaped the Ottoman style of historical accounts utilizing both past and foreign ideas. The şahnames Lokman produced can be considered as propaganda which glorifies and eulogizes sultans as heroes as well. Overall, Seyyid Lokman is a significant role in the history since he devoted his life to documenting the history and creating şahname.

Bibliography

[1] Woodhead, C. (1983). AN EXPERIMENT IN OFFICIAL HISTORIOGRAPHY: THE POST OF ŞEHNĀMECİ IN THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE, c. 1555-1605. Wiener Zeitschrift Für Die Kunde Des Morgenlandes, 75, 157-182. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/23868556

[2] Woodhead, C. (2007). Reading Ottoman "Şehnames": Official Historiography in the Late Sixteenth Century. Studia Islamica,(104/105), 67-80. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.bu.edu/stable/20141105

[3] Fetvaci, E., & Fetvaci, E. (n.d.). “Office of the Ottoman Court Historian”. Retrieved from https://www.academia.edu/1506799/Office_of_the_Ottoman_Court_Historian

[4] Emine Fetvaci (2013) From Print to Trace: An Ottoman Imperial Portrait Book and its Western European Models, The Art Bulletin, 95:2, 243-268, DOI: 10.1080/00043079.2013.10786071

[5] Sevgi Kutluay. "Zubdat al-Tawarikh (‘Cream of Histories’)" in Discover Islamic Art, Museum With No Frontiers, 2019. http://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;ISL;tr;Mus01;35;en

Source: [http://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;ISL;tr;Mus01;35;en&cp]

[6] Emine Fetvacı (2013). "Sokollu Mehmed Pasha's Career". Picturing History at the Ottoman Court. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. p. 102. ISBN 9780253006783.

[7] Emine Fetvacı (n.d.). “Others and Other Geographies in the Sehname-i Selim Han”, 810-83. Retrieved from https://www.academia.edu/10490962/Others_and_Other_Geographies_in_the_Sehname-i_Selim_Han

[8] Emine Fetvacı, Picturing History at the Ottoman Court, Indiana University Press, 2013,  (ISBN 9780253006783), 316 pages, p.132-137.