Theodoros Ralli

Private collection, Athens

Paris, Salon, 1882, no. 2237 (as L'Eunuque)
Manchester, Royal Manchester Institution, 1882, no. 24 (as An Egyptian Eunuque)
Paris, Exposition Universelle, 1889, no. 27
Cairo, 1891

Charles de Mourgues, Livret illustré du Salon, 1882, Paris, p. 71, illustrated
Gaston Schéfer, 'L'Orient', in L'Exposition des beaux arts, Salon de 1882, Paris, 1882, p. 185, cited; p. 186 (a drawing after the present work illustrated)
Exposition Universelle de Paris, Royaume de Grèce, Paris & London, 1889, pp. 77 & 78 (titled in Greek Eυνούχος διαπερνων μαργαριτας (Eunuch stringing pearls))
Maria Katsanaki, Le peintre Théodore Ralli et son oeuvre, (PhD. diss.), Université Panthéon-Sorbonne, Paris, 2007, vol. I, pp. 49 & 92; pp. 363-64, no. 52, catalogued (as L'Eunuque or L'Eunuque enfilant des perles, whereabouts unknown)
Athens, Benaki Museum, Theodoros Ralli, Looking East, 2014 - 2015, exh. cat., p. 62, fig. 28, catalogued & illustrated (as Eunuch Stringing Pearls)

The canvas has been lined and is securely attached to a keyed wooden stretcher. There is a faint stretcher mark in the centre of the composition, corresponding to the horizontal stretcher bar member, and a very small spot of old, stable craquelure in the background closer to the centre of the upper framing edge. Two very small spots of somewhat discoloured retouching, possibly addressing old flaking, are visible upon close inspection in the door to the left. Ultra-violet light reveals some minor, scattered retouching, including: - strokes of cosmetic retouching in the upper part of the extreme right framing edge and in the extreme left framing edge; and - a circa 6cm. stroke of retouching in the lower left of the man's garment, addressing what appears to be an old repair. This is also visible upon very close inspection but is not distracting to the naked eye. Overall, this work presents very well and is in good condition. Presented in a gilt frame.
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Stringing Pearls is a rediscovery in Ralli’s oeuvre, and perfectly captures his exceptional skill at depicting intimate scenes of daily life in Egypt. Seated on an ornamented wooden bench adorned with elegant silk cushions, a Nubian man dressed in yellow silk carefully strings white teardrop pearls into a necklace. Picking them one by one from a small ceramic bowl, he appears fully concentrated on his task, unaware that he has dropped two on the floor. Pearl cultivation and the pearl trade were integral to the Middle East region’s economy before the discovery of oil and gas, and the advent of industrially produced pearls. Fashioned into necklaces and bracelets, or to embellish jewellery, natural pearls supplied from the region were prized by jewellers all around Europe.

Born in Constantinople, Ralli pursued a thoroughly international career. While Paris became his home early on, throughout his life he travelled frequently to Greece and the Middle East, often spending the winter months in Cairo. From the 1870s he trained alongside other foreign painters in the studio of Jean-Léon Gérôme, whose legendary draughtsmanship and photographic finish provided a model of perfection Ralli emulated with great success.