At the Mosque Door by Osman Hamdi Bey at the Metropolitan Museum

2/9/26 - Acquisition - New York, Metropolitan Museum - Almost two years ago, the Paris auction house Dupont et Associés offered for sale a true little gem, At the Mosque Door (ill. 1) by Osman Hamdi Bey [1] (see the news item of 17/11/24). Like the visitors to the Hôtel Drouot, the Metropolitan Museum was not immune to the painting’s charms and acquired it directly [2]. The work is registered with the Department of Islamic Art, although it will presumably be displayed most of the time in the galleries of the Department of European Paintings. It is the earliest of the artist’s various depictions of the Muradiye Mosque in Bursa, Turkey.