Abstract:

Gazanfer Agha (d.1603), with the post of the chief white eunuch, the only intermediary between the sultan and the external world as the head of the Privy Chamber and the Enderûn, where the pages lived and were educated, was one of the most powerful figures of the Ottoman Palace, during the periods of Sultan Murad III (r.1574-1595) and Mehmed III (r.1595-1603). During the reign of Murad III, the black eunuch aghas were granted an equal position with their white counterparts, thereby affording the chief black eunuch Habeşi Mehmed Agha (d.1590) an active political role within the Palace. Mehmed Agha maintains active patronage in the field of architecture and book arts with his privileged position. After his death, Gazanfer Agha reclaims the superiority of the white aghas by starting to direct the artistic activities in the Palace. The illustrated manuscripts, that he took part in the preparation, architectural works, poets and scholars under his patronage emphasize the character of high-rank Ottoman court officials’ behavior of representing their might through arts. Gazanfer Agha, who provided the appointment of a tutor in his madrasa, which he intends to build with the support of grand vizier Koca Sinan Pasha (d.1596), planned to prepare a manuscript depicting the scene of the assignment and the qualification of a tutor in the madrasa as a sketch. In this Masnawi, which is registered at the Istanbul Süleymaniye Library Hagia Sophia 4787, the mediating role of the grand vizier Koca Sinan Pasha in the appointment of a tutor to the madrasa, the trial lecture, and the feast given at the house of Gazanfer Agha constitute the subjects of the depictions. The work was written by Sayyid Lokman during the period of Murad III and illustrated by a painter who appears to be in the team of Nakkaş (Painter) Osman and participated in the production process of the second volume of Shahinshahnama, which was prepared during the reign of Murad III. The Gazanfer Agha Madrasa which consists of the tomb, sebil (public fountain) was constructed between 1593 and 1596 and depicted verbally and visually in Nâdirî’s Dîvân, with its privileged location and architecture near the Divan Yolu which is the ceremonial route. Gazanfer Agha sought a competent tutor before constructing his desired madrasa. Muhyî Pasha (life in 1583) whom he consulted due to his trust in his knowledge, recommended his son-in-law Seyfizâde for the job. Despite this, he inquires in secret to be sure of his competence. Gazanfer Agha, who has been taken care of the madrasa in person and shows attention to the quality of the education there, appears as an actor who controls the training of novice boys (pages) in Enderûn as the chief white eunuch and thus playing an educational role in the Palace. Agha reinforces his role as an education patron by building a madrasa. Therefore, in this study, the appointment of a tutor to the Gazanfer Agha Madrasa, the construction of the foundation, the education process, and the educational patronage of Gazanfer Agha as a white eunuch, have been evaluated within the framework of the clues reflected in the Ottoman visual culture, and the conditions and networks that affect the formation of the madrasa have been put forward.

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