Sultan Süleyman and the Süleymaniye Mosque, Constantinople, 1574 (or earlier), altered in 1688 to represent Ibrahim I 1559 - 1688

Melchior Lorck created this engraving of Sultan Süleyman and the Süleymaniye Mosque in Constantinople in 1574, though it was later altered in 1688 to depict Ibrahim I. The composition is structured by a stark contrast: the Sultan, meticulously detailed, stands against the backdrop of a distant, almost ethereal cityscape, viewed through an arched opening. The artist employs a rigorous use of line to differentiate foreground from background, reality from representation. Look at how the weight of the lines in the foreground creates depth, setting off the opulence of the Sultan's robes, in contrast to the delicate, almost fragile rendering of the mosque. Lorck uses the semiotic language of spatial relationships to convey power, and to explore the relationship between the ruler and the ruled. The alteration of the engraving introduces a layer of complexity. It destabilizes the authenticity of representation. What was once a portrait of Süleyman is repurposed. The act challenges our assumptions about truth in art, and emphasizes the fluidity of meaning across time.