Hançerli Sultan Tomb
About the Person:
- Hançerli Fatma Sultan was one of the prominent women of the Ottoman dynasty. She was the granddaughter of Bayezid II, daughter of Şehzade Mahmud, and the wife of Mehmed Bey, son of Grand Vizier İbrahim Paşa of the Çandarlı family. She was known for her charitable works.
- Her waterside mansion near Bostan Pier in Eyüp was at one point used as a temporary educational building for students of the Mühendishane (Ottoman School of Engineering).
About the Tomb:
Construction Year: 1533
Ordered by: Herself or her family
Architect: Unknown
Prominent Features:
- The tomb has a square plan with open sides, covered by a slender dome supported by four marble columns.
- The columns are made of white marble and have lozenge-patterned capitals; they are connected by angled arches.
- The entrance façade is adorned with a crowned portal (taç kapı) featuring decorative elements and an inscribed panel.
- The headstone of Hançerli Fatma Sultan bears an inscription in *celi sülüs* script, which reads: “Huwa al-Ḥayy al-Bāqī / The late and forgiven Hanzade Hançerli Fatma Sultan, daughter of the late and forgiven Sultan Mahmud, son of Sultan Bayezid Han Veli, son of Sultan Mehmed Han, the Conqueror of Islambol. For the soul of the late and forgiven Hançerli Fatma Sultan, al-Fātiḥa. Year 939 [1533].”
- The floor of the tomb is earthen. The spaces between the columns are enclosed with iron grilles. It is a simple yet elegant example of an open-air tomb.
