Marife Dini Araştırmalar Dergisi

Abstract

Bookbinding is the name given to the book covers that have been made since the ancient times for the purpose of preserving the writing. It takes its name from leather, which is the most widely used material in its construction. Three types of Islamic bookbinding, of which early examples are seen in Egypt and Yemen, have been identified so far. These are box binding, binding with envelope flap and binding without envelope flap. Medieval Islamic manuscripts, generally produced in codec form, were preserved with or without envelope flap. The most important examples of medieval Islamic bookbinding identified in Anatolian geography; it can be seen during the Seljuks, Ilkhanids, Mamluks and Principalities period. The bookbinding of this period are important in terms of construction and decoration techniques as well as their seals on them. Among the examples of these seals, which can also be called stamps, are either names or prayer phrases. When the seals with the name are examined, it is understood that they point to the bookbinders of the bookbindings. However, the seals with prayer words are not yet understood, since they are not covered in detail. In our study, “Sikati billah” seal, which is a seal type, is discussed. This phrase is an Arabic noun phrase meaning “In Allah I trust”. As a result of the researches carried out by us, this seal was detected in 4 different bookbinding in Hasan Pasha, Yusuf Aga and Inebey Manuscript Libraries. All of the bindings where the seal is seen are dated to the 13th century in terms of material, technique and decoration features. It is not clear whether the seals on the skin are made with a single common nail. However, it has been determined that the seal content is a prayer expression intended for trust.