I went to the Metroplotian Museum of Art this past week and noticed some artwork that greatly related to our class discussion of Suleyman the Magnificent.
At the museum, I was walking through the exhibits and saw some amazing work. One piece that really interested me was the image I attached to this post. From the card I read at the site, it is a war helmet made for the sultan. That sultan was Suleyman. It is beautiful and well crafted for a time that is not as advanced as today with limited resources and tools. However, what I learned at the museum that Suleyman's reign was often called a "Golden Age". While walking through the rest of the room that held art from his reign, it is clear that his reign was a Golden Age. Another piece that was beautiful it the plate I also attached to this post. This piece not only shows the Ottoman Empire's increasing wealth and status but how they achieved that status. The plate looks very similar to the plates from China. The oriental style of the Ottomans suggest that a lot of their influences were caused by cultural diffusion and military campaigns through neighboring countries and empires. This makes clear that in order to have a successful empire, it is important to create forgein relations with neighboring empires which is exactly what Suleyman did, making him "magnificent" and creating a Golden Age for the Ottoman Empire during his rule.
