Gate of the Divan Poetry Museum

About this Item

English Title: Gate of the Divan Poetry Museum
Turkish Title: Divan Şiiri Müzesi'nin Kapısı
Location: Beyoglu
Province: Istanbul
Search Terms: Museum--; Ottoman--; Inscription-- 19th Century; Nation--
Photographer: Dayla Rogers
Year Taken: 2005
Narrative: Above the entrance to the former Mevlevi lodge in Galata the inscription in the form of a poem dates from the 19th century. It commemorates renovation work by sultan Mahmud. The gold symbol at the center of the archway is the Tughra, or the sultan's seal. Note its juxtaposition immediately beside the Republican flag.; The Mevlevi dervish order (the "whirling dervishes") was officially closed down in 1925, but continues to exist, even holding rituals for tourists in this location.; Today, the building houses a museum of Ottoman court poetry, displaying manuscripts of the works of divan poetry from the Ottoman period, and items connected with the Mevlevi dervishes. That a museum of Divan poetry is housed in a former dervish lodge indicates the connection of poetry and mysticism in the Turkish literary tradition, invoked by modern authors.
Sponsor Donor: University of Michigan Language Resource Center
Copyright Holder: Dayla Rogers
filename: 06023

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Full citation: "Gate of the Divan Poetry Museum." In the digital collection Turkish Life in Pictures. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/t/tlpic/x-06023/06023. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 22, 2025.