A FIGURED GRAVE MONUMENT IN THE COURTYARD OF HAGIA SOPHIA CHURCH IN TRABZON


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ALP S.

SANAT TARIHI DERGISI-JOURNAL OF ART HISTORY, vol.30, no.2, pp.931-944, 2021 (ESCI) identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 30 Issue: 2
  • Publication Date: 2021
  • Doi Number: 10.29135/std.826590
  • Journal Name: SANAT TARIHI DERGISI-JOURNAL OF ART HISTORY
  • Journal Indexes: Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI), Art Source, Directory of Open Access Journals, TR DİZİN (ULAKBİM)
  • Page Numbers: pp.931-944
  • Keywords: Trabzon, 19th century, non-Muslim, grave monument, sculpture
  • Anadolu University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

This article is about a late 19th century tomb monument in the courtyard of Trabzon Hagia Sophia Church with child reliefs on its four sides. The monument is formed from three blocks and while its almost square rectangular pedestal and the body containing reliefs in the same form are exhibited together, the possible capital of the monument has been moved to another place in the church courtyard. Since the grave monument does not have any inscriptions, the identity of the owner of the tomb, the ethnic origin of the family who built the grave and the artist are unknown. Similarly, since the non-Muslim cemeteries in the city are completely lost today and there is no surviving record of them, it could not be determined from which cemetery it was brought. The fact that the tomb monument is made of Carrara marble extracted from Tuscany and has close similarities with the 19th century Italian samples suggests that it was made by a European sculptor and was brought to Trabzon. The objects and the toys held by the figures of children on the reliefs and their similarities with the examples in Italian graveyards also suggest Italian origin of the monument.