Sulimano Imperator de Turchi
- Gallery: Room 90
- Culture: Venice
- Made in: Venice (city)
- Date: 1547-1554 (circa)
- Object type: print
- Materials: paper
- Museum number: 1878,0713.4164
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
Before you is "Sulimano Imperator de Turchi," a striking portrait print of Suleyman the Magnificent. Created in Venice around 1550, this is a woodcut print showing the Ottoman emperor in a detailed profile bust within an ornate oval frame.
Look closely at the design: the emperor's image is carved from one block, while the border, including a lion mask and two female figures, comes from another. The border's base is marked with the words: "In Venetia per Mathio Pagan in Frezaria tien per insegna la Fede," naming the printer, Matteo Pagani.
Inscribed beneath the image is the title and a brief biography in the woodcut itself. This artwork belongs to a pair with another print of the Sultan’s favorite wife, both sharing the same border block. It reflects the Renaissance woodcut style, popular in Italy, and provides a rare visual record of a powerful historical figure.
See it in person
Sulimano Imperator de Turchi is on display in Room 90 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and take a photo of it to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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