A portrait of an elegant lady in an oriental dress,
oil on copper, 43.1 x 28.5 cm, framed

The present painting is an excellent example of the “Turkish fashion” that had been prevalent in Europe since the end of the Siege of Vienna and the beginning of intensified diplomatic relations with the Ottoman Porte. However, the costume depicted here is probably Persian. Two comparable paintings are preserved in the Museum for Orientalist Painting in Doha, Qatar.

A possible author may be Ludwig Ivenet, who painted a series of small portraits of the family of Margrave Louis William of Baden-Baden, nicknamed “Turkish Louis”, in oriental costumes for the decoration of Favorita Palace at Rastatt.

The elaborately adorned costumes in these paintings are very similar to the one in the present painting, showing a wealth of details, such as delicately patterned fabrics and garments set with pearls and precious stones. The pictures also include a number of traditional national costumes, occupational uniforms, and mythological disguises. Originally, Margravine Sibylla Augusta had more than seventy pictures integrated in the Mirror Hall of her new summer residence, fifty-six of which have survived at Rastatt.