A MOSQUE BEARING DEPICTIONS OF DERVISH LODGE ITEMS: AFYONKARAHİSAR BAŞMAKÇI RECEP BEY MOSQUE

Abstract

Wall paintings, which started to be seen in Ottoman society from the 15th century, became widespread in civil architecture in Istanbul from the second half of the 18th century. They spread to all Anatolia and the Balkans in a short time anda re observed even in small-scale village mosques. In this study, the architecture of the Recep Bey mosque, which is located in the center of Başmakçı district in the southeast of Afyonkarahisar, was assessed in terms of Sufi culture by considering the embroideries made using the hand-drawn technique in the interior part, depictions, writing program, possible iconographic meanings that the depictions may have, and depictions of tekke items found in the structure. Mosques with two and four minarets, salsabil pool with arch and curtain on it, curtain and oil lamp placed in the niche of the mihrab, pitcher, clock, scales and scissors, eight-door, five-story paradise with a tree of heaven placed upside down on it and tekke items depictions were used on the walls of the work. According to the master inscription found on the west wall, the hand-drawn decorations were made by a master named “Hüseyin Arif” on “5 Muharram 1310” (G. July 30, 1892). The depiction of many tekke items found on the same wall suggests that “Hüseyin Arif” was working with a tekke. In the study, the depictions of the tekke items in the structure and the writing program were examined in detail, and it was concluded that the master could be Bektashi or Rifai, and the relations of these sects with each other as well as the futuwwa and ahi organizations were examined. With its depictions, the mosque is an original example of small-scale village mosques, which are frequently encountered in the region, and is an important representative of tekke art with its tekke item depictions. Keywords: Turkish Art, Afyonkarahisar, Recep Bey Mosque, Wall Paintings, Hand- drawn Decoration, Bektashism, Rifaism, Ahi Order and Futuwwa.