Architectural study of Yali Körprülü

Saladin, Henri. Le Yali des Keupruli a Anatoli-Hissar. Côte Asiatique du Bosphore.

€ 4.500,00

One of 150 copies. Fine architectural study of Yali Körprülü, the oldest surviving seaside mansion (yali) on the Bosporus strait in Istanbul. Particularly remarkable for its detailed depictions of the rich ornaments and decor of the walls and ceilings in the residence.

The Körprülü seaside mansion is the oldest extant private residence in Istanbul. It was built in 1699 for Amcazade Hüseyin Pasa (1644-1702), a member of the Köprülü dynasty of grand-viziers in the second half of the 17th century, who was grand-vizier under Mustafa II from 1697 until his death. The residential complex he built on the Anatolian coast of the Bosporus at Anadoluhisari consisted of three mansions surrounded by gardens and orchards that extended landward. Only the assembly room (divanhane) of the men's quarters (selamlik) has survived, and today is in urgent need of repair after partial restorations performed in 1956 and 1977.

Text by the architects Henri Saladin and René Mesguich; the drawings were created under the direction of the architect M. Y. Terzian by two of his students and subsequently coloured by Saladin. With a foreword by the French naval officer and novelist Pierre Loti, who laments the decay of the Bosporus mansions and proclaims that the Körprülü yali should be "saved at all costs".

Boards slightly scratched. Paper lightly toned; occasional small marginal flaws. A good copy of this prominent work on a splendid, now largely lost example of Ottoman architecture.