The Golden Age of the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century was illuminated not only by conquests and political power but also by eminent figures in science and art. One of the most extraordinary and multifaceted geniuses of this brilliant era, whose name echoes through the pages of history as a warrior, a mathematician, a historian, and a master miniaturist, is Matrakçı Nasuh. From the game from which he took his name due to his mastery with the sword, to the mathematics books where he deciphered the secrets of numbers, and to his unique miniatures depicting a sultan’s campaigns on paper, his life and works portray a rare genius embodied in a single person. Matrakçı Nasuh and his works offer a richness comparable to the versatile artists of the Western Renaissance and are the most vivid proof of how Ottoman civilization was shaped not only by the sword but also by intellect and brush.
Ottoman Leonardo da Vinci: Who was Matrakçı Nasuh?
While Europe marveled at Leonardo da Vinci’s mastery in various disciplines, a similar “Renaissance Man” shone in the Ottoman court during the same century: Nasuh bin Karagöz bin Abdullah al-Visokavi al-Bosnavi, or better known as Matrakçı Nasuh. Believed to have come from a Bosnian family and educated in the Enderun School, Nasuh is one of the brightest products of the Ottoman merit system. The Enderun was not just a palace school but an academy that equipped the empire’s future administrators, commanders, and artists in every respect.
Matrakçı Nasuh honed his talents to their peak with the education he received at this academy. His mastery in swordsmanship, deep knowledge in mathematics, meticulousness in historical writing, and revolutionary approach to miniature art captured the attention and earned the appreciation of a world-ruling sultan like Suleiman the Magnificent. The titles “Üstad” (Master) and “Reis” (Chief) bestowed upon him by the Sultan are an indication of his prestige in the palace. He exhibited an intellectual and artistic profile rarely seen not only among artists of the Suleiman the Magnificent period but throughout all of Ottoman history.
Sword and Intellect: The ‘Matrak’ Game He Was Named After and His Swordsmanship
“Matrak,” which gave Matrakçı Nasuh his nickname, is a reflection of his warrior identity. So, what is the matrak game? Matrak is a type of military training sport or martial art developed in the 16th century. Players would hold “matrak” sticks, usually made of willow wood with rounded tips, in their hands, and a soft leather cushion (shield) in their left hands. The goal was to bypass the opponent’s shield and defensive moves to touch their head with the stick. This game, based on speed, agility, intelligence, and strategy rather than brute force, held an important place in the close-combat training of especially Janissaries and Enderun students.
Nasuh became so famous for his mastery in this game that the nickname “Matrakçı” became part of his name. However, his swordsmanship was not limited to matrak. He was also an expert in other martial arts such as spear, archery, and sword usage. He even wrote a work titled Tuhfetü’l-Guzât (Gift of the Ghazis), which explained his knowledge and training methods on these subjects. This shows that for him, sport was not just a game but a serious training method that ensured soldiers were always fit and ready for the state’s survival.
Master of Numbers: Mathematics Books He Wrote for the Palace
Behind Matrakçı Nasuh’s warrior identity lay a keen mathematical mind that roamed the abstract world of numbers and calculations. This aspect of his genius arose from the needs of the empire’s colossal bureaucratic mechanism. He penned two important works on mathematics to facilitate the work of scribes and accounting experts in the palace.
The first of these works is named Cemâlü’l-Küttâb ve Kemâlü’l-Hüssâb (The Beauty of Scribes and the Perfection of Accountants), and the other is Umdetü’l-Hisâb (The Fundamentals of Calculation). In these books, he summarized the mathematical knowledge of the era and also developed new and practical methods, especially for multiplication. For example, he prepared the first versions of tables we know today as “multiplication tables,” thereby speeding up calculations. His works were taught as textbooks in the Enderun for many years and contributed to the more efficient functioning of the Ottoman bureaucracy. These studies are proof of how skillfully he used not only the sword but also the pen.
The Brush that Rendered Cities on Paper: Miniature Art and Its Historical Significance
When Matrakçı Nasuh and his works are mentioned, his revolutionary approach to miniature art is undoubtedly the most enduring and captivating legacy. Traditional Ottoman miniature art typically focused on stylized depictions of human figures, sultan portraits, and mythological scenes. Matrakçı Nasuh, however, broke this tradition and turned his brush to cities, castles, ports, and landscapes. He was as much a storyteller as he was a topographer, a cartographer, and a documentarian. With this feature, he carved out a unique and distinct place among famous Ottoman miniaturists.
Süleymanname: A Visual Diary of a Sultan’s Campaigns
The pinnacle of Matrakçı Nasuh’s art consists of his works depicting the military campaigns of Suleiman the Magnificent. These works are generally known as Süleymanname miniatures and are visual diaries that follow a sultan’s journey step by step. The most famous of these is Beyân-ı Menâzil-i Sefer-i Irâkeyn-i Sultân Süleymân Hân (Explanation of the Staging Posts of Sultan Suleiman Khan’s Campaign to the Two Iraqs), which narrates Suleiman’s campaign to Iran between 1534-36.
In this work, Matrakçı meticulously depicted all important cities, castles, staging posts, and natural obstacles along the route of the Ottoman army from Istanbul to Baghdad and Tabriz. His miniatures almost never include human figures; their true heroes are the cities themselves. We learn about the appearance, walls, important mosques, bridges, and geographical locations of cities like Istanbul, Aleppo, Baghdad, and Tabriz from that period through his brush. These miniatures are not merely works of art but also invaluable historical documents on 16th-century urban history, geography, and military logistics.
Pioneer of Cartography: Depicting City Plans and Castles
Matrakçı Nasuh’s miniatures also make him one of the pioneers in the field of cartography in the Ottoman Empire. Although his works do not possess a scientific scale and projection like Piri Reis’s maps, they can be considered “illustrated maps” that describe the topographical structure and architectural character of a city or region. Using a unique perspective, he depicts cities almost from a bird’s eye view, with a slight angle. In this way, he manages to show both the facades of buildings and the general plan of the cities simultaneously.
For example, in his Istanbul miniature, we can see the silhouette of the Historical Peninsula, the city walls, Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, and the ships in the harbor with all their details. These depictions are the most reliable visual sources about how these cities looked at that time. When depicting a castle, he not only shows its outer walls but also the structures within and the geographical obstacles around it, presenting it almost as a military reconnaissance report. With this approach, Matrakçı revealed a unique vision that fused art, history, and geography into one.
Matrakçı Nasuh’s Legacy Today: His Place in Art and Science
When Matrakçı Nasuh passed away in 1564, he left behind not just a name but a colossal legacy spanning various fields. He is a figure who single-handedly proved that the Ottoman Empire was not solely about conquests; it also placed significant importance on science, art, and sport. Matrakçı Nasuh and his works offer us an opportunity to understand the richness and intellectual depth of the 16th-century Ottoman world.
His miniatures are preserved today in some of the world’s most important collections, such as the Topkapi Palace Museum Library, and continue to be invaluable resources for historians, architects, and art historians. Matrakçı Nasuh, as a warrior with his sword, a scientist with his pen, and a historian with his brush, has taken his rightful place in history as one of the brightest and most versatile geniuses raised by the Ottoman Empire.
