Click to enlarge.
Today's image of the week depicts a formal audience between
Ahmed III's powerful Grand Vizier,
Ibrahim Pasha, and the
Vicomte d'Andrezel, the French Ambassador to the '
Sublime Porte' (as the Ottoman court was called in diplomatic circles.) The date is given as October, 1724. This puts the work squarely in the middle of the so-called '
Tulip Era' of the Ottoman Empire, a time of relative peace and prosperity, and one in which
what John Brewer called the 'world of goods' opened up by global trade and consumer culture was beginning to transform Ottoman society. These changes are evident from the French fashions which dominate the painting, as well as
the craze for exotic tulips which gives the period its evocative name.
The artist is
Jean-Baptiste van Mour (1671-1737) a Flemish-French painter who became celebrated as a painter of the Ottoman court. His specialty was audience scenes such as the one above, but he was also allowed to paint
the harem.
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