An Aga of the Janizaries
Etched and published by Robert Blyth British
After John Hamilton Mortimer British
Not on view
Mortimer's design evokes the dangers and exoticism of the East, with this brooding portrait of a Turkish military leader (Janizaries were members of the sultan's guard who acted as protective escorts for European travelers.) Unconcerned with accurately reproducing his subject's military costume, Mortimer instead concentrated on his deeply shadowed eye, intense gaze, and fierce profile. The freedom of Blyth's etching, especially evident in the expressive line used in the ruff, turban, and background shading, is well matched to Mortimer's inventiveness.
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