Mehmed III
This replica from the 16th century exhibited in your room is of one of the 87 talismanic shirts from the Collection of Sultan’s Clothing at Topkapi Palace and it is considered to have belonged to Mehmed III according to the prayers, motives and meanings of the talisman on the shirt and therefore was adorned with one of his poems…
May this talisman keep you away from the evil… Save you from any trouble, any disease… make you bulletproof and invincible…
Mehmed III was the son of Sultan Safiye and Selim II. He was smart and agile; kind and merciful; had his sword and bow by his side at all times.
When he was sent to Manisa as the governor of Sanjak, "My son, do not believe that your father is dead even if you hear it from me unless you see his grave, do not leave Manisa and be vigilant all the time." his mother told him so that he would be cautious against any conspiracy. She also wanted a shirt to be tailored for him to protect him from any sort of evil, trouble and diseases.
The Head Augur calculated the propitious moment when the prayers become effective according to his birth day and horoscope. Cotton cloths were weaved and thinned according to the rituals and became ready to be written on. Black, red, gold and of course blue, the power of magic, inks were used. Prayers started to be calligraphed on the shirt as well as the patterns added meaning to the good wishes. Cypress tree meant a long life for the Sultan and the rest of the shirt was adorned with flower motives.
It took a few years to complete and send the talismanic shirt to Mehmed. Mehmed was well educated in Manisa and lived there as a successful and valued leader by all nations for 12 years.
When he least expected, they brought him the news of the unfortunate death of his father. It was now the time to leave Manisa.
He succeeded to the throne after the death of his father and reigned for 8 years. He willingly commanded his army during the campaigns. During all these years at all hard times Mehmed had the shirt his mother had tailored for him. Maybe the power of the talisman, of the prayers protected him…
He visited the shrine on October 27th, 1603. It was partly sunny; a soft wind was blowing on this gloomy day. Yellow leaves fell on the neck of his kaftan and one fell on his hand. He held the leaf, stared at it for a while… He was burning in thoughts; he was desperately thinking about his country… They needed a victory… Deep in thoughts, he was walking back to his palace accompanied by his officers when a dervish approached him and said that a big incident would befall in fifty six days and that he should not be blindsided. "Count the days, the death is very soon." he said to him. The unfortunate times, then, started quickly…
He was still very young; an intellectual sultan adoring poetry and arts…
Even though there are various rumours and the real reason is still unknown, separation day arrived on December 21st, 1603 just like the dervish foresaw… He was buried next to his father at Hagia Sophia after his death…
One of his poems …. is written on the shirt presented in your room…
