Lot 41: LUIGI RUBIO (ITALIAN 1795-1882) PORTRAIT OF ABDUL MEDJID KHAN AT THE AGE OF 25

Signed, dated and inscribed Peint d'après nature/Constantinople/1847/Rubio l.r., and titled ABDUL MEJID KHAN/AETATIS SUAE XXV u.l.

Oil on canvas

65 by 54.5 cm., 25 1/2 by 21 1/2 in.

Most probably, Paris, Salon de 1848, no. 4013

E. Bénézit, Dictionnaire des peintres, sculpteurs, dessinateurs et graveurs, Paris, 1976, vol. 9, p. 164

Sale, Ader, Picard, Tajan, Paris, 13 April 1992, lot 205

Acquired by the present owner at the above sale

An enlightened ruler from the outset, Abdul Medjid proclaimed an edict known as the Hatt-i Sharif of Gulhane only four months into his reign, which launched a period of major reforms and reorganisation. The proclamation promised reforms such as the abolition of an unfairly imposed poll tax, reform of conscription, and greater equality of religion. The goal of the decree was to help modernise the Empire militarily and socially so that it could compete with the great powers of Europe. The Sultan also hoped the reforms would win over the disaffected parts of the empire, especially in the Ottoman controlled parts of Europe, which were largely Christian. The edict was followed up with the Hatt-i Humayun of 1856 which promised full equality of religion, and the Nationality Law of 1869 that created a common Ottoman citizenship irrespective of religious or ethnic divides.

Abdul Medjid Khan was among the most western-orientated Sultans the Ottoman Empire had ever had. He took an avid interest in Western European culture and was a patron of its artists and musicians. He loved opera, playing host to numerous composers of the day, among them Franz Liszt, whom he awarded the Order of Nichan-Iftikhar. Luigi Rubio was among the painters invited to the Ottoman court, where the present portrait was painted.

Rubio trained in Rome, and under Léon Cogniet in Paris. He lived and worked in Geneva for twenty years, building up his reputation as a portrait painter and travelling extensively to execute royal portrait commissions. As well as going to Constantinople, he travelled to Russia to paint the Tsar.