Baghdad
About this artwork
Melville travelled extensively in the Middle East in 1881-2. He reached Baghdad in April 1882, writing in his journal ‘we sighted the minarets of Baghdad. What before had been to us only a name of the “thousand and one nights” became at once a reality’. Although disappointed that the city little resembled the romantic fantasy of the Arabian Nights, Melville made numerous sketches of street life and the city architecture. Here a group of armed men pause to water their horse, while a carpet beater is caught in mid motion.
Updated before 2020
see media-
artist:Arthur Melville (1855 - 1904) Scottish
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title:Baghdad
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date created:1883
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materials:Watercolour on paper
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measurements:34.80 x 50.20 cm
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object type:
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credit line:Miss Betty Melville Kerr Gift 2008 in memory of her father Mr Melville James Douglas Kerr
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accession number:D 5627 B
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gallery:
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glossary:
Arthur Melville
Arthur Melville
Melville's travels in Europe and the Middle East inspired his vibrant paintings in oil and watercolour. He developed a distinctive technique of watercolour painting, described as 'blottesque', using dabs of pigment on wet paper and blotting them with a sponge. Melville, born in Angus, studied...