Mecid Efendi Kk. The Mejid Efendi Mansion.

YAPI ve KRED BANKASI'NIN

BALARBASI' NDAK

M ecit Efendi Kk
Yazan : Taha TOROS
Renkli Fotoraflar: Sami GNER

n getike saylar azalan stan Deiik mimarsi ile sslemesinde, kar smail Paa, 1830-1895 yllar arasnda

G bulun eski kklerinden, en h

tiamls (MECT EFEND K
K) ad ile bilinen, Balarban-
daki binadr.
Mimarsinin gz kamatrc zellii yann
k olarak, Osmanl ve Msr uslbu ha
kimdir.
Eski kaytlara gre bu kk iin 20.000,
mefruat iin de 8.000 Msr altn sarfe-
dilm itir.
yaam, M srda ve Parisde deiik ko
nularda eitim grm, bat kltr ile
yorulmu bir kii olarak tannr.

smail Paa, 1863 ylnda -Sayit Paann

da, tarih, sanat ve edebiyat toplantlarna yerine- Msrn valisi oldu. Ayn yl stan
sahne olmas asndan da bu kkn ok lk sahibi, smail Paamn kimlii: bul'a geldi. Sultan Abdlazlz'i Msra da
renkli ve zengin bir mazisi vardr. vet etti. Padiahn Msr' ziyaretinde,
Hidiv smail Paa, Tanzimatn ilnndan gzne girerek, ondan Msr Hidivliini
kiyz dnme yakn insana huzur veren nceki yllarda, Osmanl ynetimine ba kopard. Bu suretle Msrn ynetimi, ve
bir koruluk iersindeki bina, Msr Hidivi kaldrarak Msrn imtiyazl valiliini alan raset ekli ile, babadan oula gemek
smail Paa tarafndan AV KK ola Kavalal Mehmet A li Paann torunudur. zere Hidivlere brakld. smail Paa, Hi
rak yaptrlmtr. Babas brahim Paadr. div nvanm alan ilk validir.

2
smail Paa Msr'a bat grnml zengin
eserler kazandrd. Kahire'de tiyatrolar,
operalar, okullar, byk parklar, baheler
ve geni yollar yaptrd. Ne var ki, bu imar
hareketleri yznden Msr hzinesi b
yk ak verdi. smail Paa'nn ad savur
gana kt. ngilizlerle Franszlarn i
birlii ile, Hidivlikten ayrlmak zorunda
kald. 1879 Ylnda stanbul'a yerleti. 1895
Ylnda, Emirgandaki yalsnda ld. Aile
mezarlna konulmak zere, cenazesi M
sr'a gtrld.
Hidiv smail Paa'nn en byk hizmeti
Svey Kanalnn almasna yardm et
mesi ve bu maksatla kendi varlndan bir
milyon altn vermesidir.
Balarbandaki Kkn Abdlmecit Efen-
diye ntikali:
smail Paa'nn lm zerine Balarba-
ndaki avkk oullarndan Mahmut Ham-
di Paaya intikal etti. Sultan Abdlhamit
II bedelini Hazine-i Hassa dan yni sa
ray btesinden detmek sureti ile kk
satn aldrd ve amcazadesi ehzade Ab
dlmecit Efendiye tahsis etti.
Byk bir av evi olarak yaplan bina, bu
suretle ehzade Abdlmecit Efendi'nin
hem yazl, hem ressamln srdrd
doal grn ve havas gzel bir sanat
yuvas oldu.
Aslnda yetenekli bir ressam olan Abdl
mecit Efendi, 1900 ylnda, kkn eskimi
olan d kapsnda deiiklik yapt. Trk Kkn salonundan odalara gei blm (stanbul'da eine rastlanmayan bir sanat slubyle yaplmtr.)
Msr slbundan esinlenerek burada bir The passageway from the salon to the bedrooms (dene in a style unmatched in Istanbul).
ssleme aheseri yaratt.
Kkte Anlar Unutulmayan Sanat ve Ede Bu toplantlarn en nemlisi, Merutiyet
Kk bir yazlk saray niteliinde olan bu biyat Toplantlar : ten sonra, Trkiye'nin kaderinde byk rol
kkte Abdlmecit Efendi resim yapar oynayan siyaset adamlarnn ve eski sad
ken, en zevkli bir mr srdrmekte, ya Abdlmecit Efendinin ehzadelii, Veli
razamlarn biraraya gelmeleri ile anmsa
knnda yine kk bir yazlk saray niteli ahtl ve Halifelii dneminden bu yana nr. Kkn deiik eitli aalarla do
inde olan binada oturan, nameler sta ayakta kalabilen kkn ve emsalsiz ko nanm, huzur dolu koruluunda, Abdlme
d ehzade Seyfettin Efendi'de besteler ruluunun sk sk sanat ve edebiyat top cit Efendi'nin arasra nl kalem sahiple
yapmaktayd. lantlarna sahne olduu bilinmektedir. rini de biraraya getirdii olurdu.

O dnemin grne gre sfat (air-i

zam,) hatt (Dahi-i zam) yni en b
yk air ya da en byk dahi olan ABDL-
HAK HAMTin bir eseri, bu bahede oy
natlm ve bu vesile ile davetlilerin ya
kalarna -kz Drrehvar- tarafndan
(FNTEN) yazl gm ineler taklmt.
Daha sonra, Haydarabat Nizamnn gelini
olan ve ngiltere Kralnca kendisine pren
seslik nian verilen DRREHVARn
da bu kkte doduu sylenir.

Kkn El Deitirmesi :

1924 Martnda Halifeliin kaldrlmas ve

Hanedann yurt dna kartlmas hak-
kndaki hkme gre bunlarn gayrimenkul-
lerinin tasfiyesi zorunlu bulunuyordu. Bu
nun iin de bir mddet tannyordu. K
kn satlmas iin Abdlmecit Efendi, yur
du tetkederken Cevat Paay vekil tayin
etti. Cevat Paa ilk i olarak, kkn iin
deki tablolar -damad Nurullah Eset Beyin
umum mdr olduu- Smerbank'ta tehir
ettirmek sretiyle, sattrd. Kk antika
niteliindeki avizelerden ve gzel tablo
lardan mahrum kalarak, byk bir suskun
luk iersinde kaderini bekledi. Sonunda
stanbul Defterdarl bu kk armatr
lkle ve mtaahhitlikle uraan -sanrm,

3

Mecid Efendi Kk.
Kalkavan ailesinden- Mehmet ve Selahat-
tin adlarndaki kardelere satt, (bunlar
nn Stadnn mteahhitleri idi.)
Son olarak Yap ve Kredi Bankasnn ku
rucusu Kzm Takent, bu byk sanat
eserini korumak amac ile, Bankas iin
satn ald. Kkn harem ksm bozduru
lup bir dinlenme yeri haline dntrld.
Kkn st katndaki oturma odas (Halife Abdl Mecit efendi tarafndan
yaplan bu tabloda ei Mihiti kadn gzkmekte.
The sitting room on the upper floor (Abdul Mejid Efendis wife Mihiti
appears in the painting done by him).
4
The Mejid Efendi Mansion.
Ne var ki, bu yeni blm hlen kullanlma
maktadr. Senede bir iki gn Yap ve Kredi
mensuplar ocuklarnn snnetlerinde a
lan kk tmire muhta bir prlanta gibi,
antik hviyeti ile, kapal tutulmaktadr.
D kaps olduu kadar, tavanlar, duvar
lar ve tm sslemeleriyle amzn de gnl doldurucu bir sanat eseridir ki, onu
koratif llerden apayr bir kymeti
Kkn penceresinden bahesine ve boaza bak
tarafndan yaplmtr.)
A view of the garden and the Bosporus from a window (painted by Mejid
Efendi).
olan kkn, stanbulda bir benzeri daha
bulunmamaktadr.
Kkn Dnyas:
Kk, Balarba'nn cadiye Tepesinde bir
sanat abidesi olarak varln srdrmek
tedir.
(Ku Bak) sokanda, 18 Nolu sokak ka
ps 1900lerde, Abdlmecit Efendinin
izdii bir plna gre yeniden yaplmtr.
Ssleme sanatn doruuna vardran bu
muhteem kapnn stnde, Arapa, Kf
tipindeki yaz STN OLAN ALLAHTIR.
Yahut ALLAHTAN BAKA GALP YOK
TUR anlamna gelmektedir. D kapdan
avluya girilince, asl binann selmlk ka
ps ile karlalr ki bu grnm de ss
leme sanatnn bambaka bir rneini sim
geler. Bu ahap kapnn stnde de Kf
harflerle Tanrnn adilliini ve ihsannn
bol olduunu belirten, Arapa bir cmle
vardr.
Binaya girilince salonun gzellii duvar
lar kaplayan rengrenk inilerin sihirli
havas, sizi parltl bir sanat dnyasna
gtrr. Duvarlar ile, tavanlar ile, levla-
r ile, minesi ve emesi ile doyum ol
maz bir gzelliin, adeta bir hayl alemi
nin iine gmlrsnz. inilerinin uyum
lu desenleri arasnda renklerin kucakla
t bir dnyada yaarsnz. nk inile
rin en renklisi ve renklerin de en sihirlisi
bu kkn iinde bulunmaktadr.
inili mine:
erisinde odun yakmak iin deil de san
ki hayranlkla bakmak iin yaplm olan
ini mine binann i donatmnn bir a
heseridir. insanolu, inilerdeki renklerin
birbirine kenetlendii bu mnede ate
yakmaya kyamaz. ylesine gzalc ve
grenler dumandan bile kskanrlar!
(Halife Mecid efendi
 grmek iin, Abdlmecit Efendi gnder
mitir. Yurda dnnde kendisini hima
ye eden ve ayn zamanda ressam olan Ab
dlmecit Efendinin takdirlerini kazanm
ve dostluunu devam ettirmi, her zaman
onun yannda bir sanat arkada olmutur.
Bu scak dostluun tablolara yansd da
bilinmektedir. Nitekim, kkn ierisinde
ki AK EMES denilen tablo da bu
derin dostluun unutulmaz eserlerinden
biridir.
Kkn alt katndan st kata otuzdrt ba
samakl, insana huzur veren bir merdi
venle klr. st kattaki renkli odalar ve
bu odalardaki ssl yazlar grlmeye de
er, ilgin sanat eserleridir.

Levhalar, Levhalar...
Sokak kapsnda, bina kapsnda, byk
salonda, emede, odalarda Arapa ve es
ki Trke gzel szlerin yerald iniler
le renklendirilmi, hat sanatnn nefis r
nekleri bulunmaktadr.
Bunlarn bir ksm eski hattatlara ait ol
makla beraber bazlar da bozulmalarndan
dolay nl hattatmz Hamit Beye tamir
ettirilm itir.

Binann giri kapsnn st sslemesi.

Decorations on the upper part of the door to the
mansion.

Sanata Susayan Gnlleri Serinleten Bir

eme :
Kkn ierisindeki kelerin en gzelle
rinden biri de emesidir. inili duvarla
ra arkasn yaslam bu zarif mermer e
me kkn Abdlmecit Efendi'ye geme
sinden sonra yaptrlmtr. emenin s
tnde Kurandan alnm bir yet vardr
Trkesi: (HEREYE HAYAT VEREN SU
DUR.) Bu gzel yaz, Ktahyal Mehmet
Hilm inin talebesi olmakla iftahar eden,
Hattat Mehmet Emine aittir. emenin
altnda ise (Padiahm ok yaa) yazs
yer almaktadr.
Esiz Bir Fresk:
A lt salondan st kata klrken sada ne
fis bir tablo ile karlarsnz. Bunu, 38
yanda len nl ressammz Hseyin
Avni Lifij 1889-1927 yapmtr.
Byk bir sanat stad iken gen yata
len Avni Lifij, Abdlmecit Efendinin K
kne en fazla girip kan sanatkrlardan
biridir. Kk yata beliren sanat kabili
yeti zerine onu, Parise bu konuda eitim Ressam Hseyin Avni Lifij tarafndan yaplan A k em esi panosu.
Fountain of Love pcnel painted by Hseyin Avni Lifij.

5
 i.-- i
Kkn sckak kapsnn yukardaki fotoraf, 1900 ylnda ekilmitir.
O yl, kkn bu kaps, Abduimecid Efendinin izgileri ve desenleri
dorultusunda yeniden yaplmtr.

The above photograph of the street door of the kk was taken in

1900, the year in which this door was redone in line with Abdulmejid
Efendi's own sketches and designs.

Hamit'in lmez ad bu kkn duvarlarn

da da yaamaktadr.
Arapa yazl olan levhalarn anlamlar
zetle yle d ir:
Allah'tan niyaz dileyen levhadaki bir ya
znn anlam :
Bizleri ateten kurtar, dorularla birlikte
Cennete gnder.
Dinlemek iin kalbini kullan; nk kulak
aldatc olabilir.
Bir eyi aklnla gr; nk gz yanltc
olabilir.
Herkes kendi vatann ve yuvasn sever.
Bayku ise bir viraneyi bin gl bahesine
deimez.
lim rtbesi, tm rtbelerin stndedir. Kkn gz kamatrc yerlerinden bir ke vitrayl balkon.
Milletin efendisi, millete hizmet eden- The balcony with stained glass, one of the most dazzling parts of the mansion,
dir.

6
 MECT EFEND KKNN MUHTEEM KORULUUNDA, MUHTEEM BR TOPLANTI
191 ylnd a . ehzade Abdulmecit Efendi'nin, Baglarbandakl k)knde air Abdulhak H m ld 'ln (Finlen) adl eserinin tem sili vesilesiyle verdii ziyafette hazr bulunan, dnemin
nl k i ile ri.
SKEMLEDE OTURANLAR : yin Meclisi Reisi Menemenli Zade Rifat, air Abdulhak H im it, Maarif Nazr kr.
AYAKTA, LK SIRADAKLER (Sadan itibaren) : air Faik li,..., Hseyin Suat (Bastonlu), ahabeddin Sleyman, Mnr Nigar, Yunus Ndi, Feylesof Rza Tevfik,..., Sleyman Nesip,
smail H im i, Celal N uri, beydullah Efendi, bnlemin Mahmut Kemal, Abdulm ecit, Yusuf Rzi, Sleyman Nazif, Ahmet Refik, Reat Fuat, Hseyin D in i , Ahmet hsan, Falh R fk,....
ARKA SIRADAKLER : A li Ekrem,......., ....... ........ ........ , mer Rza (beydullah Efendi ile Celal N u ri'n in arkasnda ba gzken)....... , ....... , ....... . Sleyman N azif'in arkasndaki Zeki
(Mecid E fendi'nin kaynbiraderi) onun sanda, arkada b y k l k i i, Mecid Efendinin esvabcbas smail, onun yannda ve ta rih i Ahmet R efik'in arkasndaki zaif gen Abdulhak
inasi,......., Terifat Nazr smail Cenan, Mze Mdr H alil Ethem, Necip Asm,.......

A FESTIVE GATHERING IN THE LOVELY GROVE THE MEJID EFEND MANSION

Celebrated personalities of the day attending a banquet given on the occasion of a performance of the poet Abdulhak Hamid's play Finten at the mansion o f Crown Prince Abdulmejid
Efendi in Balarba in 1916.
SEATED IN CHATRS : President of the Assembly of Notables Menemenli Zade Rifat, the poet Abdulhak Hamid, M inister of Education kr.
STANDING FRONT ROW (fro m righ t to le ft) : The poet Faik li,...... , Hseyin Suat (w ith cane), ahabeddin Sleyman, Mnr Nigar, Yunus N id i, philosopher Rza Tevfik,
Sleyman Nesip, smail Hami, Celal N uri, beydullah Efendi, bnlem in Mahmut Kemal, Abdulmejid, Yusuf Rzi, Sleyman Nazif, Ahmet Refik, Reat Fuat, Hseyin Dni, Ahmet
hsan, Falih R fk ,.......
STANDING BACKROW: A li Ekrem,..., ..., ..., ..., mer Rza (his head is visible behind beydullah Efendi and Celal N u ri), ..., Zeki (M ejid Efendi's brother-in-law ) behind Sleyman
Nzzif, to biz rig h t Mejid Elendi' ta ilo r Ismail (the moustachioed man in back), next to him and behind historian Ahmet Refik the slim young Abdulhak inasi,........ , M inister of
Protocol Ismail Cenan, Museum Director Halil Ethem, Necip Asm, ...

Eski Trke yazlar arasndan setiimiz

baz levhalar da Atasz niteliindedir.

nsann vcudu fnidir; yok olur. Ne var

ki, bir eser brakmsa o kalcdr. Ebedi
yen yaar.
Tanr ilkbl sahiplerinin evlerini, bazen
yorgun ve tedirgin bir sere kuuna yuva
olarak saklar.
Shhat, Tanrnn bahettii bir nimet gi
bidir. Vcut, bundan baka bir elbise ile
vnemez.
Yeteneksize mzrap verilirse, ok tel k
rlr.
Kii noksann bilmek gibi irfan olmaz.

Btn bunlar arasnda Kanuni Sultan S

leymana ait olduu sanlan bir iirden
paralar da nl Hattatmz Hamitin eliy
le inilerde se slendirilm itir:
HALK NDE MUTEBER BR NESNE
YOK, DEVLET GB.
OLMAYA DEVLET CHANDA, BR
NEFES SIHHAT GB.
Ksaca, muhteem bir tepeye oturtulmu
olan, kaplaryla, tavanlaryla, duvarlary
la, odalaryla, emesi ve minesiyle ve
bir ini deryasyla, emsalsiz koruluuyla
Abdlmecit Efendi Kk bugn, sanat
deeri yksek, mimar slbu deiik an
tik nitelikte bir aheser kompozisyonu
Kkn dier giri kaps. The other entrance to the mansion.
dur.

7
 THE M A N S IO N O F
M EJID EFENDI

By Taha Toros
Photographs by Sami Giiner

he most splendid of Istanbul's

T rapidly disappearing stately

wooden homes Is the mansion
of Mejid Efendi In Baglarba$i on
the Asian side of the Bosphorus. In
addition to its striking architecture, it
also has a rich and colorful past as the
scene of historical, literary and artistic
gatherings.
Located within a spacious grove, the
building was originally constructed as a
hunting lodge for the Khedive of Egypt,
Ismail Pasha, and exhibits both Ottoman
and Egyptian style. According to old
records, 20,000 Egyptian gold pieces were
spent on the building itself and a further
8,000 on the furnishings.

The firs t owner of the house was Ismail

Pasha, grandson of Mehmet Ali Pasha of
Kavala, who seized the governorship of
Egypt in a rebellion against Ottoman rule
In the years preceding the Tanzimat
reforms. Educated in Egypt and Paris,
Ismail Pasha (1830-95) was steeped in
western culture.
He was made governor of Egypt in 1863
and came to Istanbul the same year.
Inviting the then Sultan, Abdulaziz, to
Egypt, he curried favor and managed to
capture the office of Khedive, becoming
the firs t governor to assume this title,
which was then passed on from father
to son.
Tho tiled chamber.
Ismail Pasha had many western - style
buildings erected in Cairo, including
theaters, operas, schools, parks, gardens
and wide roads. But all this construction
activity led to a huge deficit in the
Egyptian budget, and Ismail Pasha became
known as a spendthrift. Forced to abandon
the Khediveship In 1879, he settled In jid Efendi. A skilled artist himself, Abdul-
Istanbul where he died in his seaside mejid made the mansion a home for the _ : - v,, ana artists
villa at Emirgan in 1895. His greatest ser arts and in 1900 changed the main gate ne of the most important of these
adding a masterpiece of decoration of his gathering8 took place when the statesmen
vice to Egypt was in assisting in the
own creation. While Abdulmejid painted and former grand viziers who played such
opening of the Suez Canal.
in the main building, the composer prince a arge role in determining Turkeys fate
When Ismail Pasha died, his hunting Seyfettin Efendi composed melodies in followmg the Constitution came together
lodge went to his son Mahmut Hamdi a nearby summer palace. here. Abdulmejid also convened the
Pasha and was bought by Sultan Abdul- prominent artists and writers of his time
hamid II from the palace budget and The mansion itself and its surrounding and a play Finten, by the greatest poet
allocated to his nephew prince Abdulme- grove are known to have been the scene of the day, Abdulhak Hamid, was
performed in the garden.

8
 Kkn renkli odasna giri kaps ve zerinde nl Hattat Hamid levhas.
The entrance to the mansion, with calligraphic inscription over it.
When the caliphate was abolished in 1924
and the surviving members of the dynasty
sent abroad, their properties were
liquidated by law. A t that time, the many
paintings in the mansion were auctioned
off by Siimerbank, and the house itself,
sans chandeliers and works of art, was
abandoned to its fate. Eventually, the
Istanbul Finance Department sold the
house to two contractor brothers who had
built the nn Stadium.
Finally, Kazm Takent, the founder of
Yapi-Kredi Bank, bought the home for the
Bank in an effort to preserve it, and had
the womens quarters converted into a
rest area. Unfortunately, however, this
new section is not open to the public at
present.
Today the mansion continues to stand as
an architectural monument on icadiye
Hill of Balarba. When one enters the
courtyard through the gate at no. 18 Ku
Bak Street, which was replaced in 1900
with one of Abdulmejid's own design, one
immediately meets the main door of the
mens quarters--a wooden door also
constituting a rare example of the art of
decoration. Both doors bear Arabic
inscriptions in the Kufic script.
As one enters the salon, one is directly
transported into a magical world by the
harmoniously colored tiles on the walls,
ceilings and hearth. This fireplace
especially is the masterpiece of the
mansions interior. Another lovely corner
of the house is the elegant marble
fountain set against a tiled wall.
Then, climbing the restful 34-step
staircase to the second floor, one
encounters a glorious fresco on the right
painted by the renowned Turkish painter
Avni Lifij. This great master, who died an
untimely death at 38, was a frequent
visitor at the mansion of Abdulmejid, who
had sent the young artist to Paris for
study upon realizing his immense talent
and continued to be his patron after his
return. Entitled Fountain of Love, the
fresco is an expression of the deep bond
of friendship between these two men
and fellow-artists.
The many tile tablets which ornament the
gate, front door, fountain, hearth, salon
and other rooms of the house bear Arabic
and old Turkish inscriptions which are
outstanding specimens of the art of
Kkn en enteresan bir blm mozaik ssleme.
calligraphy. While some of these were
done by calligraphers of the time, others
The mosaic decoration, one of the most fascinating
have been repaired by the contemporary
parts of the mansion.
master, Hamid Bey, whose immortal
name lives on on the walls of the stately
mansion.
I d ll d I U fU S Ml 51 vi