AN OTTOMAN QIBLA INDICATOR IN THE STYLE OF BARUN AL-MUKHTARI, 19TH CENTURY

A 19th century Ottoman Universal Qibla Indicator (“Kıblenüma-ı Afaki”) modeled after the original invented in 1151 AH/1738 AD by the Armenian Bārūn al-Mukhtariʽ (Petros Baronyan) and presented to the Ottoman Grand Vizier Yeğen Muhammed Pasha. This instrument shows the direction to Mecca for almost 400 cities in the world. Baronyan used an engraved map and a list of cities which he numbered in the map so that the direction could easily fixed. 33 by 5.5 cm PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION What characterizes this later Qibla finder instrument is that the drawings and texts on this instrument are handmade and written, in contrast to the original instrument by Baronyan, which are printed from copperplates. The instrument consists of a cardboard box featuring an upper and lower lid. On the inside, the upper lid features a miniature of the Masjīd al-Haram in the Holy City of Mecca and a 21 line engraving explaining the use of the instrument. The lower lid features a world map representing Asia, Europe and part northern Africa and a geographical table featuring the names of a large number of cities, grouped by country and numbered. The compass is located on the upper side of the map. The needle and the alidade are both removable. The back of the needle is positioned on Mecca and its pointed end indicates the various localities inscribed on the map. The inscriptions below the topographical image on the lid are in Ottoman Turkish and provide instructions on how the indicator can be used, including the signature of the maker and the date and place of production. This text is reproduced from text printed on the Baronyan instruments. The map on the lower lid lacks the numbers of the cities which are found on the printed instruments made by Baronyan himself. The maker of this handmade instrument is unknown. There are at least two other handmade later exemplars of this instrument from the 19th century. SURVIVING INSTRUMENTS There are at least 11 other surviving instruments by the same maker or in the same style of the maker. Nine exemplars are instruments printed and made by Baronyan himself. Two other copies are later exemplars. INSTRUMENTS MADE BY BARONYAN HIMSELF 1. Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, Istanbul 2. Topkapi Palace Museum, Istanbul 3. Kandilli Observatory, Istanbul 4. Museum of Islamic Art, Cairo 5. Chester Beatty Library, Dublin 6. Museum of Islamic Art, Jerusalem 7. National Maritime Museum, Haifa 8. Private Collection, New York (Sold at Christies, Live Auction 19778) 9. Private Collection, Stockholm