Zeyneb Sultan Complex in Archives

Ottoman architecture continued to produce outstanding works in the 18th century by blending western elements in classical understanding. One of those works was the complex in 1769 which was named after Zeyneb Sultan, who was the daughter of Ahmed's, and which she had had it built to Mehmed Tahir Aga, the chief architect of that period. Like many historical artifacts, this complex got changed due to various reasons; A madrasah was added to the courtyard in early 20th century while the mausoleum and a public fountain were destroyed. The complex has not been approached as a whole in conducted researches until today: only the mosque and the burial area. However, archive documents were never been used in those studies. In this thesis, the current literature, the Prime Ministry Ottoman and Republican Archive, the General Directorate of Foundations, the Istanbul Regional Foundations I. Regional Directorate and the records kept by the Directorate of Cultural Heritage Preservation Regional Directorate of Istanbul IV, the library archives and different historical Istanbul maps were examined and the he historical process of the complex has been studied by trying to reach the primary sources as far as possible. In the introduction section, the aim, the scope, the importance of the subject and the followed method were presented. In the first chapter, to better understand the subject, the life of Zeyneb Sultan, architectural tendencies of the period and a brief history of the complex which prepared using the historical maps, were included. In the second chapter, the elements of the complex were processed separately and the restorations of the structures were mentioned within the framework of the available data; in addition, the architectural and decorative features of the complex were mentioned, and the current conditions of those were recorded. The burial area and the tombstones of the important people were studied, a comparison made based on two catalogue work prepared for the burial area and some deficiencies were corrected. The general evaluation of the complex and the summary of the new information obtained are included in the conclusion section. Plans, drawings, documents, and transliterations, which have been considered significant, are included in the appendix.