Social Cohesion and Cultural Expressions: The Case of the Sacred Textiles in the Armenian Orthodox Churches of Istanbul

Prologue The social and cultural history of Armenians is long; indeed one cannot fully appreciate its parameters without deeper investigation. This paper reports on a segment of Armenian history— the sacred historical textiles housed in the Armenian Orthodox Churches of Istanbul, Turkey. These artifacts had never before been studied, although a select few objects produced in Istanbul have been published in books devoted to the Armenian collections in Jerusalem, Etchmiadzin (Armenia), and the Sis collection from Anatolia currently in Beirut, Lebanon. Illuminated manuscripts receive the greatest attention among the historical Armenian religious artifacts, followed by stone, metal and wooden objects. Magnificent textiles exist in the aforementioned museum collections but have not been studied in as great a detail as in this endeavor. A book on the material, Splender and Pageantry: Textile Treasures from the Armenian Orthodox Churches of Istanbul (Marchese & Breu), is under contract to be published by fall of 2009. A second book on non-textile objects, Treasures of Faith: Sacred Relics and Artifacts from the Armenian Orthodox Churches of Istanbul (Marchese & Breu) is nearing completion. In 2002 we presented a paper at TSA on the miniature tradition in the textile collections. This paper expands on that work, as we have been studying the collections steadily for over 10 years. The research involved content analysis and ethnographic methodologies in working within the Armenian community in Istanbul

Expressions in Silk: Embroidered Miniatures on Historic Textiles from the Armenian Apostolic Churches of Istanbul

Introduction The assessment of Armenian embroidery offered by Kouymjian in his publication The Arts of Armenia is reflected in a collection of textile objects housed in the treasuries of the 33 Armenian Apostolic Churches and the Patriarchate (the official residence of the Patriarch) in Istanbul, Turkey. The textiles, many donated by devout members of the Church community, are still used in celebrations of the Divine Liturgy. The collections contain examples of the brilliant splendor associated with religious celebration, the depth of piety of the lay community, especially women, and a sense of attachment to the historical and cultural traditions of Christianity. From baptism and the beginning of life to the last rites in death, cloth played an important role in the domestic and religious culture of Armenian life. The religious textiles in the collections are a visible reflection of high artistic achievement attained by household-based and professional needle artists who labored in an effort to produce spectacular images in cloth and thread. They stand as a rich expression of individual talent and deep spiritual conviction. Colophons or inscriptions found on many of the pieces indicate that their makers or contributors hoped for salvation and honor by successive generations through donations of the textiles to the Divine Liturgy. In addition, the textiles augment the formality and static nature of the physical structure of the church by providing a mobile art that connects the lay community to the living context of the Divine Liturgy. The churches were the physical anchors of the Armenian community. Their material culture visibly projected social cohesion, pride and an emotional attachment to the core of beliefs that defined Armenian Christianity. Background Armenians. The Armenian Apostolic Churches of Istanbul were extremely important in maintaining the social identity and cultural heritage of the Armenian population of the city from the late medieval to the modern period. By the end of the sixteenth century, ( Armenians were part of a minority non-Muslim population that outnumbered Muslims. / By the end of the nineteenth century, Istanbul\u27s Armenian population was between 17 and 22 percent of the total population of the city (Karpat 1985, 95-106; Kouymjian 1997, 26; Sanjian 1965, 34). At this time 55 apostolic churches existed in the city (Tuglaci 1991). During the Ottoman Empire Armenians held high positions among the Ottoman authorities, as regional administrators and diplomats as well as accomplished artists and artisans (Barsoumian 1982, 171 ff; Tuglaci 1991; Davison 1982, 327)

The Ubiquitous T-Shirt and Fashionable Islamic Dress Cultural Authentication in Turkey

From both rural and urban traditions, the dress of Turkey is rich in historical forms that have been transformed over the years. Transformation occurred as individuals and groups reacted to the external influences of trade, technology and political events. With the incorporation of the global market economy and a greater variety of inspirations and products available in rural and urban areas, individuals and groups combined elements of traditional dress with modern forms to create dress that is distinctively Turkish. These multi-layered cultural authentications are incorporated into use with meanings that function to maintain a social order and act as a marker of social and cultural traits. In this paper I present examples of cultural authentication in the dress of present-day Turkish women: Authentication of the t-shirt by both rural and urban women, and incorporation of current fashionable dress into a distinctive “Islamic Dress” for young women in the urban areas. The author discusses five features of the ubiquitous t-shirt that have contributed to its incorporation into the dress of village women and, in a different mode, urban women’s dress. In the case of the young Islamic women, a transformation occurred within the context of use, in which several components of fashionable dress offered in the larger market were combined to cover the body in a manner appropriate for expression of specific Islamic ideals