Open full image Pin

Kozbekçisi, or Steward of the Sultan's Wardrobe

Anonymous Greek artist

1809

watercolor

From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum

Romanticism Early 19th Century Portrait

Dominant colour

Kozbekçisi, or Steward of the Sultan's Wardrobe is a 1809 watercolor by Anonymous Greek artist, a Romanticism work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.

Who painted this?: Anonymous Greek artist
When & what style?: 1809 · Romanticism
Where can I see it?: Victoria and Albert Museum

About this work

This painting is a watercolour portrait by an unknown Greek artist. It shows a man called the Steward of the Sultan’s Wardrobe. He worked in Istanbul around 1809. The picture comes from a big set of views and studies made for a British diplomat. That diplomat, Stratford Canning, wanted pictures of Ottoman life. If you like this mix of European and Ottoman styles, look up the Victoria and Albert Museum.

The story of this work

Overview

An anonymous Greek artist, possibly associated with Konstantin Kapidagli’s circle, created this water and bodycolour painting in 1809 as part of a series commissioned by Stratford Canning during his diplomatic mission in Istanbul. The work depicts an official in a plain red robe with a green collar, wearing a tall white conical hat, blending Ottoman artistic techniques with European perspective. Originally bound in a volume, the series was acquired by the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1895 from Charlotte Canning.

Read the full account in the museum source.