Magnaura Place Istanbul The Earliest University Of Europe
It is recorded that in the year 425 of the Common Era era, by decree of the Byzantine emperor Theodosius II, a secular institution of higher learning was established in Istanbul, then known as Costantinopolis. Assembling the various branches of human inquiry under the roof of the so-called Magnaura Palace, this institution can be considered a very early type of university; indeed, in a history of universities, it appears on top of the list as being the oldest university in Europe with names such as University of Costantinopolis, or the Magnaura Palace University or, in Greek, "Pandidakterion tes Magnauras".
The name MAGNAURA is derived from the Latin phrase MAGNA AULA meaning a hall capable of containing large number of people, where official ceremonies, meetings are held. In our day, in those Italian universities dating from the Middle Ages, the graduation ceremony still takes place with the presence of "Il Magnifico Rettore" (the magnificent rector), in the prestigious AULA MAGNA in Italian the two words are placed in reverse order and pronounced as ˈaula manya]). The AULA MAGNA designed by R. Erskine in 1997 for the Frescati Campus of the Stockholm University, making an honourable contribution to modern architecture, is a stucture which offers glass transparency to the surrounding old trees, its central idea being based on the classical amphiteater; the building is open to all kinds of cultural activities worthy of the University’s high standard.
Following the closure in Athens of the Plato Academy in 529, the noble task of preserving the written heritage of the classical cultures was passed on to Costantinopolis, namely our city of Istanbul. In order to transmit this past knowledge to future generations, monks in the monasteries were working hard in the "Scriptorium" (‘writing-area’) copying manuscripts under the watchful eye of the "Armarius" (‘head monk’). In the renowned monastery of Studion, close to Yedikule district and to the Marmara sea, for example, a group of monks slept while another group without interval continued copying and multiplying ancient manuscripts (this Monastery was also known as that of "Akoimetoi", i.e. ‘Non-Sleepers’). Scholars are telling us that books copied in the monasteries were generally related or limited to theological matters; whereas books of any kind, whether commissioned by the emperor or by the many urban benefactors (maecenas) were copied by the individual scribes and in workshops. It was thanks to such people curious about ancient lore that the city must have gained a paradise-like atmosphere for books.
The higher learning institute, pride of the Islamic world, Beytü’l-Hikme, established in Baghdat under al-Ma’mun (813-835), took the initiative to send envoys to Costantinopolis to obtain books specifically of Plato and Aristotle, which they planned to translate into the Arabic language. Again, such active interest in the intellectual accumulation of the past must be viewed within the context of valuing it and trying to incorporate it to new life.
The Costantinopolis University at Magnaura was restructured by the regent Bardas during the reign of emperor Michael III (842-867). Classes were offered through 31 chairs: 15 in Latin, 16 in Greek. Here, Platonism and Aristotelism were earnestly studied and discussed, and the two traditions thus constantly kept alive. The functionining of the University lasted until the 15th century; however, after the Latin invasion in 1204, it appears to have lost its secular character which it had maintained since antiquity, entering gradually under the influence of the Church. In a last ditch of effort Manuel Paleolog (1391-1425) was able to establish an institution of higher learning which gained fame for its schools of grammar and Aristotelian philosophy. Two eminent persons of culture acted as directors of this "Mouseion" covering many fields of study. One was G. Scholarios, respected Aristotelian, who became the first patriarch after the city was taken by the Turks; the other was G. Argyropoulos, more inclined to get closer to the Catholic Church in Rome. This last scholar, in fact, emigrated to Florence where he taught Aristotelian logic. No wonder, Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini, later Pope Pius II – himself a very learned individual – impressed by these " illustrissimi viri bizantini " once exclaimed: "anyone who did not possess Constantinopolitan education, could not consider himself thoroughly cultivated !"
It would be appropriate to remind the reader that at the early stages of organized higher education the ‘university’ as such was not identified with that term. The use of "universitas", came about first in Bologna where it was written down in the statute of the "Universitas Studiorum Bolognensis", established in 1088 (for this very reason some consider the University of Bologna as the oldest one in Europe). Furthermore, in Medieval Latin "universitas" did not carry a reference to an institution of learning of universal breadth; rather, it had a legal meaning. Infact, at Bologna groups of students belonging to various fields of study (studium) went after teachers and together with them and other officials, including the rector, formed a larger community which operated in a given place, and, developing programs, according to rules and regulations, offered diplomas and rights to obtain them; such community incorporation of all parties was called "universitas".
The great reception hall at Magnaura kept also in it treasures which marvelled ambassadors, foreign or local visitors. Bishop Liutprand of Cremona visited it in the 10th century and in his description he tells that the huge throne was sided as sentinels by two gilded lions roaring frighteningly with open mouth, and every now and then beating the ground with their tail. Suddenly the throne started rising in the air all by itself. He noticed also, nearby, man made birds singing merrily on the branches of a golden tree. Such fantastic mechanisms moving by themselves (automata) were seen in some palaces of the Islamic world too, especially those in Baghdad. It is understood from sources that during the reign of the emperor Theophilos (813-842), a lover of magnificence, gifts were exchanged between Byzantium and Baghdad. Could it ever be that this precious tree with birds of artifice singing on its branches was a gift from Baghdad?
The poet William B. Yeats in his poem first published in 1928, entitled "Sailing to Byzantium" remembers this marvellous tree with birds of artifice singing past, present and future on its branches. O poets, local or outsider, who left a bit of their soul in the magic city of Istanbul, you should know that, with a few of your verses read, this city is being rediscovered !
A P P E A L
THE MAGNAURA PALACE IN ISTANBUL WAS ONCE A UNIVERSITY; THE OLDEST IN EUROPE, DATING FROM THE 5TH CENTURY. THIS RUINED STRUCTURE MUST NOT BE SOLD TO ANYONE.
THE "2010 ISTANBUL EUROPEAN CAPITAL" AGENCY MUST ACT IMMEDIATELY AND WORK WITH EUROPA NOSTRA ISTANBUL DIVISION TO DEVELOP A PROJECT IN CONSULTATION WITH ARCHAEOLOGISTS, EXPERTS IN BYZANTINE STUDIES, HISTORIANS OF CULTURE, CHAMBER OF ARCHITECTS, AND IN COOPERATION WITH THE PHANAR PATRIARCHATE FOR SOURCES TO REVIVE THE MAGNAURA PALACE. IN THIS MEANINGFUL YEAR 2010, THE PRESENT OWNERS, AS MODERN MECENES, MUST PARTICIPATE IN AND FACILITATE THE PROCESS TO RESTORE TO US AND TO GLOBAL CULTURE THIS HISTORICALLY VERY IMPORTANT MONUMENT AND TO REVITALIZE IT. NOT JUST MERELY WISHING, I STRONGLY REQUEST THIS AS AN "ISTANBULLU" AND SUBMIT IT TO THE ABOVE MENTIONED AGENCY’S AND EUROPA NOSTRA /ISTANBUL’S URGENT ASSESSMENT.
Rezan Peya Gökçen
archaeology,stage design,book arts
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Yazar: Rezan Peya Gökçen