Artisans and Pirates: Cosmography and Nautical Science in Early Modern Ottoman Mediterranean (1453-1595)

Abstract

The nautical aspects of the Ottoman empire have been studied on several occasions. However, they have never been analysed in the light of the ideas and methods of contemporary craft epistemology. Following this working hypothesis, this thesis analyses the practical dimension of nautical and cosmographical knowledge developed by the Ottoman empire between the Conquest of Constantinople (1453) and the sultanate of Murad III (1574-1595) at the end of the 16th century, taking the Mediterranean as the epicentre of the scientific-technical activity of the Turkish world in this field. Furthermore, the central theme of this thesis is craft practices in the Mediterranean maritime world of the Ottoman empire. The analysis of scientific practices oriented towards navigation and cartographic representation of the Mediterranean basin, as well as the institutions of applied science, artefacts and epistemic communities that made this possible, constitute a superb case study for the history of early modern science in general and for recent studies on artisanal epistemology in particular. The study of the Turkish case- in line with the Portuguese and Spanish and even the Venetian case - reveals the presence of new communities of craft knowledge - such as pirates - in the production of nautical and cartographic techniques, in the construction of charts and maps and in the manufacture of vessels promoted and paid for by the sultanate. One of the central points of the research lies in placing the imperial arsenal (Tersâne-i Âmire), located in the strategic Golden Horn of present-day Istanbul, at the centre of a complex technical machinery of knowledge production. In this sense, the most original aspect of this research lies in evaluating this machinery in the light of the most recent historiography on modern science. My thesis begins by addressing historiographical categories related to artisanal epistemology from the Ottoman framework. More specifically, I make a craft reading of the process of institutionalisation of Ottoman cosmography and nautical science starting from Tersâne-i Âmire. After analysing the main lines of action of Turkish artisans working in this institution, I examine a new epistemic community that I will call "pirate-artisan", as well as their main nautical and cartographic achievements. The category of pirate, or even pirate-artisan, is one of the most important notions in this thesis, since it takes on a new dimension since the Ottoman empire. These pirates will be considered artisans capable of making important contributions to the field of nautical and cosmographic knowledge. Among them I will highlight the names of Hayreddin Barbarossa, Piri Reis, and Seydi Ali Reis, among others. From the work of these individuals that has come down to us, my aim is both to reveal their contribution to Ottoman science and technology and to introduce a category of practical men into the historiography of early modern science.

Date of Award	13 Mar 2024
Original language	English
Supervisor	Carlos Tabernero Holgado (Director) & Antonio Sánchez Martínez (Director)