Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky

The board is slightly bowed. The picture is clean and ready to hang with UV light showing only a few spots of retouching to the edges and to the left of the moon, as well as an opaque layer of varnish. Held in a gold painted wooden frame with plaster mouldings. Unexamined out of frame.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Aivazovsky painted many panoramic views of Constantinople depicting the city in various lights, at sunrise, sunset and by moonlight, primarily from two viewpoints, the Golden Horn and Galata. Constantinople was only two hundred miles across the Black Sea from Aivazovsky's birthplace in the busy port of Theodosia. The large Armenian population of Constantinople, the cuisine, smells and sounds, would have been immediately familiar to the artist and goes some way in explaining why Constantinople came to have such a profound effect upon him. The cultural links between his hometown and Constantinople would have been far greater than those with St. Petersburg in the distant north. Such were the similarities between the two cities that at one time Theodosia had been nicknamed Küçük Stambul (Little Istanbul) by the Ottomans.