The restoration and preservation techniques in Istanbul in the National Architecture period

This thesis aims to study on restoration and preservation activities in Istanbul during the National Architecture period. The National Architectural Style, the last architectural genre in the Ottoman period and one of the first architectural modes in the Republican period, is a style in which Seljuk architecture, early Ottoman architecture and classical Ottoman architecture are taken as examples-apart from the architects' limited innovations. Various movements and some architectural modes had a significant impact on the emergence of The National Architectural Style. The National Architectural Style which began to be formed in the last quarter of the nineteenth century-Istanbul, especially in the time when The Second Constitutionalism was proclaimed, became the official style of the state. Significant representatives of this architectural movement are Kemaleddin Bey, Vedad Bey, Muzaffer Bey and Ali Talat Bey. Local and foreign architects in this period also show a sense of The National Architectural Style in their designs. Edifices which were either built or restored in this era bear influences from the National Architectural Style. Both in structural and ornamental interventions during these restorations, the main subject of this study can be followed. In structural restorations, architectural forms reflecting influences of Baroque style (stone cornet, rounded arch, etc.) and details (garland motif, curved lines) were taken off and were replaced with forms and details inspired by the National Architecture. In the ornamental restorations, brushworks, tileworks and pearl inlay techniques stand out. In brushworks, compositions in which certain forms such as rumi, curled branch, palmette, salbek şemse, penç and hatayi are painted in similar colors. In tileworks, Master Hafız Mehmed Emin, who revived tile art in Kütahya, produced tiles for both newly built buildings and repaired buildings. The tiles bear classic patterns and compositions. Meanwhile the technique of Sedefkar Vasıf, who was admired for his mother-of-pearl inlaid wooden door panels in the classical Ottoman period, can be traced in these restoration works' mother-of-pearl pieces. The buildings included in this study were compared with their current appearances by making use of old photographs, engravings, drawings, inscriptions and The Encümen (Council) Archive. The buildings' restoration works reflecting concept of the National Architectural Style were also explored. The subject of this thesis is buildings whose traces of repair can be investigated from present day or old photographs and drawings which reflect an understanding of the National Architectural Period.