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This is a painting of an architectural interior and exterior scene featuring people engaged in various activities. The scene is set in a covered outdoor area with stone columns and archways leading to an open courtyard. Inside the covered area, there is a richly decorated interior space with ornate tilework on the walls. Carpets and cushions are placed on raised platforms. The courtyard beyond is bathed in natural light, with shadows casting intricate patterns. Trees provide a canopy of greenery.
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This is a painting of an architectural interior and exterior scene featuring people engaged in various activities. The scene is set in a covered outdoor area with stone columns and archways leading to an open courtyard. Inside the covered area, there is a richly decorated interior space with ornate tilework on the walls. Carpets and cushions are placed on raised platforms. The courtyard beyond is bathed in natural light, with shadows casting intricate patterns. Trees provide a canopy of greenery.

National Gallery of Art · Drawing

A Fakeer at the Door of a Mosque, Constantinople

John Frederick Lewis

Date
1863
Medium
watercolor, gouache, gum arabic, and graphite on wove paper
Dimensions
overall: 33.5 × 32 cm (13 3/16 × 12 5/8 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Accession number
2023.149.1
Credit line
The Helena E. M. Gunnarsson Fund
Time span
1851 to 1875
Department
CG-E
Original NGA record
Provenance

Myles Birket Foster, London [1825-1899]; (his sale, Christie's, London, 28 April 1894, no. 24, as The Mendicant - Interior of a Turkish House); (J & W Vokins, 14 Great Portland Street, London). (sale Sotheby's, London, 24 Feb 1960, no. 47, as The Mendicant, Cairo). (sale Sotheby's, London, 15 June 1960, no. 18, as The Mendicant, Cairo); Private Collection, Switzerland until 2022; (sale, Koller Auktionen AG, Zurich, 23 September, 2022, no. 03472); (Andrew Clayton-Payne, London)

Inscription

lower left in image: J.F. Lewis ARA, 1863

NGA object ID 227684. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.