A Dance of Turkish Women and a Room for Work and Meals, Lithograph, 1842

An original antique lithograph, hand colored, from the Galleria Universale di Tutti i Popoli del Mondo (Venice, Giuseppe Antonelli, 1842). The upper image shows women dancing in a ring in a wooded garden, holding hands, all in tall white pointed headdresses and long gowns of green, crimson, blue, purple, pink and yellow; at the left, under a tree, four men make music: two in tall caps play a frame drum and a violin, and one seated in a white turban and red cloak plays a long necked lute. The lower image shows a large room with three curtained windows, paneled walls and gilt ornament at the right; women sit on low cushioned divans around the walls, some at a low round table, others at a table covered with a blue cloth, with a brazier burning in the center of the patterned carpet, while two women stand at either side.

The top margin is lettered "Tom IV", "TURCHIA EUROPEA" and "Tav 125". Under the upper image: "Danza delle Turche" (Dance of the Turkish women). Under the lower image: "Tanadaur o stanza da lavoro e da mangiare" (Tanadaur, or room for work and for eating).

Low divans running around the walls of a room were the usual seating in Ottoman houses, and a brazier of charcoal was a common way to heat a room. The plate shows two sides of domestic life among Ottoman women, the outdoor dance and the shared room of the household.

The many figures and bright gowns give this plate plenty of detail to enjoy at close range.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.