About this artwork

In 1964 McCullin was sent by The Observer newspaper to cover the civil war in Cyprus. It was his first international assignment and the photographs he took were to become his first war pictures. This picture depicts McCullin’s first encounter with the carnage of war and documents its devastating consequences. It shows a young woman kneeling by the side of her husband, head on his chest, grieving his recent death. They had been married only a few days. McCullin has carefully composed this image with the purpose of recording the scene in a serious and dignified manner in order to convey the significance of the moment.

Updated before 2020

  • artist:
    Don McCullin (born 1935) English
  • title:
    Murder in a Turkish Village
  • date created:
    1964; printed 2013
  • materials:
    Gelatin silver print on paper
  • measurements:
    54.00 x 35.50 cm (framed: 76.00 x 57.00 cm)
  • object type:
  • credit line:
    ARTIST ROOMS National Galleries of Scotland and Tate. Purchased with the assistance of the ARTIST ROOMS Fund, supported by the Henry Moore Foundation and Tate Members 2013
  • accession number:
    AR01186
  • gallery:
This artwork is part of Artist Rooms
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Don McCullin

Don McCullin