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    The Sultan's whitewasher
    The Sultan's whitewasher
    The Sultan's whitewasher
    Ebook69 pages48 minutes

    The Sultan's whitewasher

    By Edward P. O'Nirrac

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    About this ebook

    Following the Ottoman troops who conquer Byzantium is a leader of the dyers guild who is charged with destroying all the images inside Hagia Sofia, destined to become the most important Muslim mosque after those of the holy places. The whitewasher, however, is facing a conflict with that magnificent art. He engages in discussions with the helpers entrusted to him, first a Phoenician and then a Greek, developing interesting exchanges of points of view. In the end, he will decide to cover everything with plaster, leaving to posterity the possibility of finding these works of art.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherEdward Paolo Carrino
    Release dateOct 17, 2020
    ISBN9791220208857
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      Book preview

      The Sultan's whitewasher - Edward P. O'Nirrac

      http://write.streetlib.com

      DATES AND GLOSSARY

      DATES

      The siege of Constantinople starts on the 6th of April 1453 - 26 Rebiülevvel 857.

      The conquest of the city happens on the 29th of May 1453 - 20 Cemaziyelevvel 857.

      The lunar months of Islamic calendar are: Muharrem, Safer, Rebiülevvel, Rebiülahir, Cemaziye levvel, Cemaziyelahir, Recep, Şaban, Ramazan, Şevval, Zilkade, Zilhicce.

      GLOSSARY

      Allah the name with which the Immense defines himself in Koran. In this book you will find all of his other ninety-eight names.

      Başibozuk lit. damaged head, irregular Ottom an troops.

      Basileus emperor, in the Byzantine tradition.

      Bektaşi Sufi-derived brotherhood.

      Bismillah in the name of the Sublime, auspicious invocation.

      Cin supernatural entity, mostly malcious.

      Çirak guild apprentice.

      Divan council of the Sultan, governing body.

      Efrāsyāb the royal palace of the rulers of Samarkand.

      Esnaf guild, corporation.

      Ghāzī warrior, frontier man, the Islamic frontier that expands.

      Hacı pious, who successfully made the ritual pilgrimage.

      Hadis anecdote about the Prophet, peace be upon him, gathered in the Sunna, second only to the Koran.

      Hammām traditional spa complex, derivation of the Roman baths.

      Huri female beings of paradise awaiting the blessed.

      Hüsrev Persian ruler of the VI century.

      Ihtiyarlar council of elders of the guild.

      Kadı judge, applies the şeriat.

      Kalfa worker of the guild.

      Kethüda guild chief.

      Ḳosṭanṭ īnīye Constantinople in Turkish.

      Müftü jurist, expert in şeriat.

      Namazı prayer, five are mandatory: sabah, öğle, ikindi, akşam e yatsı . To be performed every day, in chronological order.

      Râya lit. flock: Ottoman civil society, excluding soldiers and slaves.

      Şeriat Islamic law, taken from Koran.

      Şeyh spiritual guide, wise man with great religious knowledge.

      Sipâhi heavy Ottoman cavalry, largely feudal.

      Tavla backgammon.

      Tekbìr Islamic war cry Allah Akhbàr: the Strong is great.

      Ulema scholar, expert in religious sciences.

      Usta guild master.

      Yenī čerī lit. new soldier: the Janissaries, Ottoman elite corps.

      Yiyit başi guild councilo r, halfway between usta and kethüda.

      SAVE A MAN

      Save a man and you will have saved humanity,

      save a work of art and you will have saved civilization.

      He remembers well the run in the snow, but he is always trying to forget it.

      Still, it always returns in dreams.

      All white around, all white above. The accelerated breathing seems to be chasing the heartbeat. The feet sinking in the frost, covered by mud. Each step is heavier. The blinding whiteness all around. Down there a copse of trees, still too far away. Behind the smoke, the screams and clangs of metal. All white around, all white above: bright sky, but matt of dense and compact clouds, spread like a shroud. Cold hands, hands that seem even harder than calluses and scars, and that dirt that does not go away. And a step after another, fast, in the snow.

      When he wakes up, every single time, he is breathless. As if the body, deceived by the dream, had really struggled. Struggled one more time, again and again, in that plain of Anatolia.

      Month of Rebiülahir 857

      He now has to walk over two hours to find the right material. Blessed the Omnipotent.

      To make a beautiful green it takes a large crop of spiny broom. He no longer even has to pay attention to the thorns, since the skin of his hands is now as resistant as leather. And of leather has the colour. The yellow spiny broom flowers are easily spotted over the garrigue: they are very tiny flowers, almost petals. Flowers that he separates, because his wife then uses them to flavour the sesame seeds, before turning the seeds into oil. Otherwise the common broom is fine too. However, it is better not to mix them up, because the common broom causes vomiting and can be poisonous. A good alternative may be lavender but, when the season proceed towards the first heat, it is found less and less.

      Green is used for the banners of the Prophet, peace be upon him. Sometimes he makes it also mixing yellow and blue.

      If red is needed, the madder root

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