War, Siege and Assault in Ottoman Miniatures

Prof. Banu Mahir is our guest speaker at Objects and Rituals this month with a presentation entitled "War, Siege and Assault in Ottoman Miniature," in which she examines the war-themed illustrated manuscripts created in the 16th and 17th centuries for, and under the patronage of, Ottoman sultans and high state officials. The lecture will be held at the Museum on Wednesday, February 28, at 6:30 p.m.

In her lecture, Prof. Mahir focuses on the varying trends and artistic styles reflected in these "historical" miniature paintings over different periods, and the interpretations they offer of specific battles, sieges and conquests carried out by the Ottoman army and navy.

Held on the second Wednesday of each month from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., the Istanbul Lectures center on the topic, "The Three Eras of Istanbul: Byzantine, Ottoman, and Republican."

Prof. Banu Mahir Mahir was born in 1956, in Istanbul. After graduating from the German High School, Istanbul, she attended the Department of Art History at the University of Istanbul. In 1984, she obtained her Ph.D. from the same department, under the direction of Prof. Nurhan Atasoy, with a doctoral dissertation entitled "Osmanlı Resim Sanatında Saz Üslubu" [The Saz Style in Ottoman Miniature Painting]. After working for a time as museum expert in the library of Topkapı Palace Museum, Mahir joined the Department of Art History at Mimar Sinan University of Fine Arts, where she has been teaching since 1997.

Voyvoda Street Lectures Objects and Rituals "War, Siege and Assault in Ottoman Miniature" Prof. Banu Mahir Wednesday, February 28 , 2007 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. Free admission The Ottoman Bank Museum Bankalar (Voyvoda) Caddesi 35/37 (0212) 334 22 70