Analyses of tectonic characters of architect Sinan?s Şehzade, Süleymaniye and Selimiye mosques

Kenneth Frampton, in his book ?Studies in Tectonic Culture?, studies the concept of tectonics as an interrelation between a building?s structural system and its symbolic values, and tries to investigate ontological and representational aspects of a building beyond its context and stylistic properties. Frampton identifies 3 distinct building conditions: the technological object that arises out of meeting a given need, the scenographic object that is used to allude to an absent element, and the tectonic object that appears in both an ontological and a representional mode. The concept of tectonics enabling us to discuss architecture beyond stylistic references sets a safe ground to understand the architecture of Sinan.In this context the tectonic character of Architect Sinan?s Şehzade, Süleymaniye and Selimiye Mosques are tried to be analyzed and his probable design method and his architectural language is studied through this three buildings. The relation between the composite character of construction and the core of a building that is simultaneously both its fundamental structure and its substance is studied through plan layer analyses. As the distinction of baldaken and exterior wall of these three mosques became more significant during time, it is proposed that the buildings gained tectonic character similar to Frampton?s concept of tectonics.