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Metaphorical Expressions in Architecture: Understanding Symbolic Meanings of Qabus Tower in Iran

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METAPHORICAL EXPRESSIONS IN ARCHITECTURE: UNDERSTANDING SYMBOLIC MEANINGS OF QABUS TOWER IN IRAN A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF NATURAL AND APPLIED SCIENCES OF THE MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY OBEID ESKANDARNEZHAD IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARCHITECTURE IN ARCHITECTURE JULY 2015 Approval of the thesis: METAPHORICAL EXPRESSIONS IN ARCHITECTURE: UNDERSTANDING SYMBOLIC MEANINGS OF QABUS TOWER IN IRAN submitted by OBEID ESKANDARNEZHAD in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arch in Architecture Department, Middle East Technical University by, Prof. Dr. Gülbin Dural Ünver ____________________ Dean, Graduate School of Natural and applied Sciences Prof. Dr. T. Elvan Altan ____________________ Head of Department, Architecture Prof. Dr. Mualla Erkılıç ____________________ Supervisor, Architecture Dep., METU Prof. Dr. Ali Uzay Peker ____________________ Co-Supervisor, Architecture Dep., METU Examining Committee Members: Prof. Dr. Adnan Barlas ____________________ City and Regional Planning Dep., METU Prof. Dr. Mualla Erkılıç ____________________ Architecture Dep., METU Prof. Dr. Ali Uzay Peker ____________________ Architecture Dep., METU Prof. Dr. Nakış Karamağaralı ____________________ Architecture Dep., Gazi University Yrd. Doç. Dr. Çağla Caner Yüksel ____________________ Architecture Dep., Mersin University Date: 03/07/2015 I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all material and results that are not original to this work. Name, Last name : Signature : iv ABSTRACT METAPHORICAL EXPRESSION IN ARCHITECTURE: UNDERSTANDING SYMBOLIC MEANINGS OF QABUS TOWER IN IRAN Eskandarnezhad, Obeid M. Arch., Department of Architecture Supervisor : Prof. Dr. Mualla Erkılıç Co-Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Ali Uzay Peker July 2015, 136 pages Symbols with their meanings have always been one of the vital and primal communication tools in humans' perception of the universe. Symbolic expressions are important means of representation of abstract ideas that go beyond the concrete physical forms. Accordingly, it’s not just about physical material of architecture that provide mere shelter; it’s about symbolic meanings of architecture that are concealed behind its concrete forms. Metaphors, on the other hand, in art and architecture are the vehicles that help the realisation of the expression of ideas through the symbolic presentations of physical forms. There is a need to disclose the very meanings of symbolic expressions of architectural forms (via metaphors) for better understanding of their historical and cultural reasonings. This thesis aims to investigate the relationship between metaphorical connotations and symbolic forms in architecture. Metaphors, by this way, act to decipher inherited historical-cultural meanings of a space/form that are hidden in the figurative forms of buildings. Panofsky’s iconographical reading in deeper sense is the methodology of the thesis in de-mythification of the selected architectural symbolic form. The thesis considers Qabus Tower (1006/7 AD in north region of Iran) as the pivot point to scan the possible metaphorical connotations of the period. Cryptic historical v and cultural meanings behind the concrete form of Qabus Tower require an iconographical reading in a deeper sense order to de-mythify its becoming reasonings. Political, cultural, religious, (Mithraism, Zoroastrianism, and Islam), as well as mythological, ontological, philosophical, and cosmological knowledge of the different historical periods in Iran are the specific issues that are concerned in order to disclose symbolic significance of the tower and its concealed mystical and mythical intentions. In this thesis, it's claimed that Qabus Tower symbolically represents the political, cultural, religious and mythological worldview of the period that is derived from Islamic period, but deeply and mostly, the tower represents the worldview that is connected to the pre-Islamic historical-cultural period of the history of Iran. Keywords: Symbolic meaning, metaphor, historical-cultural knowledge vi ÖZ MİMARLIKTA MECAZİ ANLATMA: İRAN'DAKI QABUS KULE'NIN SEMBOLİK ANLAMLARINI KAVRAMAK Eskandarnezhad, Obeid Yüksek Lisans., Mimarlık bölümü Tez Yönetici: Prof. Dr. Mualla Erkılıç Ortak Tez Yöneticisi: Prof. Dr. Ali Uzay Peker Temmuz 2015, 136 sayfa Semboller insanların evreni algılamasında her zaman önemli iletişim araçlarından birisi olmuştur. Sembolik formlar, somut fiziksel ve biçimsel ifadelerinin ötesinde aslında soyut fikirlerin temsil edilmesinde önemli araçlar olmuşlardır. Mimari ürünleri, bu anlamda, salt barınak sağlamak için üretilmiş binalar olarak değil aynı zamanda sembolic form ve arkasındaki kültürel-tarihsel anlamları ile değerlendirmek uygun olur. Metaforlar (mecazi çağrışımlar) ise sanat ve mimaride fiziksel formların sembolik ifadesinin gerçekleşmesine yardımcı araçlardır. Mimari formların tarihsel ve kültürel anlamlarını iyi anlamak için onların metaforlar aracılığı ile sembolize edilmiş anlamlarını ifşa etmeğe ihtiyaç vardır. Bu tez mecazi çağrışımlar ve mimari sembolik formlar arasındaki ilişkinin araştırılmasını amaçlarken adı geçen mecazi çağrışımlar aracılığı ile somut mimari formların ötesindeki tarihsel-kültürel bilgiye dayalı anlamları deşifre etmeye çalışır. Tez de başvurulan araştırma yöntemi ise Panofsky'nin 'derin anlamda ikonografik okuma' yöntemidir. Bu çalışma, Kuzey İran bölgesinde 1006/7 AD tarihinde yapılmış olan Qabus Kulesi nin gizemli sembolik yapısını üzerinde barındırdığı mecazi çağrışımları tarihi ve kültürel bilgilere dayanarak Panofsky nin derinlemesine okuma yötemi ile deşifre etmeye odaklanır. Kuzey İran'daki farklı tarihsel dönemlerin, siyasi, kültürel, dini vii (Mithraizm, Zerdüştlük, ve İslam) özelliklerinin, yanı sıra dönemin mitolojik, ontolojik, felsefi, ve kozmolojik bilgi kaynakları, Qabus Kulesinin sembolik önemini ve onun mistik ve mitolojik yönelimlerini açıklamak için başvurulan belirli konulardır. Tez, Qabus Kulesi nin mecazi çağrışımları ile birlikte sembolik olarak yapılandığı tarihsel döneminin İslami dönemden kaynaklanan siyasi, kültürel, dini, ve mitolojik dünya görüşlerini ifade etmesi ile birlikte, bu dünya görüşlerinin, aslında, derinden ve çoğunlukla, İslam öncesi tarihsel-kültürel dönemle bağlantısı olduğunu ortaya çıkarmaktadır. Anahtar sözcükler: Sembolik anlam, mecazi çağrışımlar, tarihsel ve kültürel bilgi viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author wishes to express his deepest gratitude to his supervisor Prof. Dr. Mualla Erkılıç and cosupervisor Prof. Dr. Ali Uzay Peker for their guidance, advice, criticism, encouragements and insight throughout the research. ix TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................v ÖZ .............................................................................................................................vii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .........................................................................................ix TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................x LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................xii CHAPTERS 1. INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................1 1.1 Architecture and metaphoric presentation ..............................1 1.2 Symbolism in culture, art and architecture .............................2 1.3 Metaphor in art and architecture .............................................6 1.4 Problem definition ..................................................................9 1.5 Aim of the study ....................................................................11 1.6 Methodology .........................................................................12 1.7 Argument of the study ..........................................................13 1.8 Boundaries of the study ........................................................14 1.9 Structure of the thesis ............................................................14 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ......................................................................17 2.1 Architectural and constructional properties of Qabus Tower .........................................................................17 2.1.1 Location and the regional characteristics of Qabus Tower ...................................................18 2.1.2 Features of the hill of Qabus Tower ...................18 2.1.3 Architectural properties of the foundatin x and the shaft of Qabus Tower .............................19 2.1.4 Details of the entrance of Qabus Tower .............19 2.1.5 Characteristics of the inscriptions of Qabus Tower ......................................................19 2.1.6 Constructional properties of the dome of Qabus Tower ......................................................20 2.1.7 Constructional materials of Qabus Tower ..........21 2.2 Limitations of earlier studies on symbolic aspects of Qabus Tower .....................................................................21 3. METHODOLOGY ................................................................................25 3.1 Panofsky's methodology of reading in deeper sense ............25 3.2 Political conditions of
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