IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF JULES LAURENS
One reason why historic monuments hold such magic
for us, is surely the thought that centuries before people stood
on exactly the same spot looking at the same building. The inspiration
for this article was a drawing of Amasra Castle's Genoese Gate executed
in 1847 by Jules Laurens. Every detail of the stonework can be discerned
on the faded paper. A woman beside the gate hides shyly behind her
veil, and on the other side an elderly man sits on the threshold
staring about him fiercely. Seeing this beautiful old gate in Laurens'
drawing invested it with fresh meaning for me. It was the beginning
of my fascination with the three-year journey on which Jules Laurens
set out 153 years ago.
For most of us it is hard to understand how travellers
of the past left everything behind to venture into the unknown.
We decided to trace part of the long journey made by Jules Laurens
and his companions in the hope that something of the spirit which
moved them might be whispered to us despite the passage of so many
years.
We followed in his footsteps from the town of Riva
on the western Black Sea coast as far as Trabzon, wondering how
much would be left of the imposing walls, street fountains, and
houses which he had recorded in such meticulous detail.
Laurens was born into a family of artists, and after completing
his own training arrived in Paris in 1842 at the age of 17. In 1845
he was disappointed when the historical landscapes he had entered
in a competition failed to win any prizes, but his meeting with
geographer and scholar Xavier Hommaire de Hell was to change his
life. The French government had appointed De Hell to carry out a
geographical and historical survey of the countries bordering the
Black and Caspian seas. After one year spent in preparation, De
Hell and the 21 year-old artist Jules Laurens set out from Toulon
on 18 May 1846 on their way to Turkey and Persia.After arriving
in Istanbul, Laurens roamed through the city sketching its walls,
mosques, fountains, and tombs. He described the city as 'utterly
enchanting, and like a vision out of the Arabian Nights'.
Their next stop was Izmit, whose ancient walls were
then still standing, Lake Sapanca with its Roman bridge, Iznik founded
by a mermaid, and Bursa, one of the foremost sources of inspiration
for Orientalist artists.
Between 20 June and 24 August 1847 they travelled
from Riva to Trabzon via Eregli, Amasra, Sinop, Gerze, Çarsamba,
Ünye, Bolaman, and Tirebolu. Laurens' ability to sketch quickly
and accurately, combined with De Hell's scientific guidance, meant
that each drawing was a remarkable document.One drawing which had
us puzzled depicted Sinop Castle. With its double walls and amongst
so many towers, we could not work out the spot on which the artist
had stood. Finally we identified the magnificent stone tower in
the picture with one that had in Laurens' time been visible from
the grounds of old Sinop Prison - now empty and open to the public.
Laurens had done his picture from a spot near the
prison, but the view of the tower was now hidden behind a modern
building.
Another drawing was of Çarsamba and showed a wooden bridge
extending like a huge centipede across the River Yesilirmak. In
Ünye we found no trace of the exquisite Ünye Palace, once
one of the largest and most magnificent stately homes in the Black
Sea region. It had been destroyed by fire, so lived on only in Laurens'
drawings.
The Black Sea coast is haunted by tragic tales of seamen who set
off never to return. In Bolaman, Laurens had depicted the house
of Mehmet, a sea captain whose house stood like a white hat on top
of a ruined tower. Years had passed, and the waves had brought back
nothing but sand and shells to Mehmet's mourning relatives. We found
the tower which looks so tall in Laurens' drawing half buried in
sand.When we arrived at Trabzon, our last stop, we saw that the
city had changed almost beyond recognition, making it was extremely
difficult to identify the places in the drawings.
New roads, drawn as if with a giant ruler, had been
built along the coast. In his views of the cities, towns and villages
through which he passed, Laurens always included glimpses into the
life of the time.
If he drew a bridge, there was sure to be a horseman
crossing it; if a river, and particularly if that river was the
Euphrates, he recorded how people crossed it. We see people deep
in conversation as they pass through city gates, and travellers
beneath the walls of Diyarbakir halting to eat and rest with their
camels. The bustle of life in the 1840s is always in evidence.Of
the shops which Laurens depicted in Gerze, with their intricate
wood carving and embellishments, Hazinedaroglu House in Ünye,
and Kelalioglu Palace in Tirebolu we found nothing remaining. So
we took consolation in the drawings showing them in all their beauty
which Jules Laurens executed during his journey.
When we arrived at Trabzon, our last stop, we saw
that the city had changed almost beyond recognition, making it was
extremely difficult to identify the places in the drawings. New
roads, drawn as if with a giant ruler, had been built along the
coast.
In his views of the cities, towns and villages through
which he passed, Laurens always included glimpses into the life
of the time. If he drew a bridge, there was sure to be a horseman
crossing it; if a river, and particularly if that river was the
Euphrates, he recorded how people crossed it. We see people deep
in conversation as they pass through city gates, and travellers
beneath the walls of Diyarbakir halting to eat and rest with their
camels. The bustle of life in the 1840s is always in evidence.
Of the shops which Laurens depicted in Gerze, with
their intricate wood carving and embellishments, Hazinedaroglu House
in Ünye, and Kelalioglu Palace in Tirebolu we found nothing
remaining. So we took consolation in the drawings showing them in
all their beauty which Jules Laurens executed during his journey.
* Nezahat Turkan
is a freelance writer.
The drawings are all taken from The Travels Through Turkey of Jules
Laurens published by Yapi Kredi Press
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