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Musical Hour
by Achille Buzzi                        

Picture
Research by Gerard Curley and Marjorie Gregson
​Acc No               46
Artist                  Achille Buzzi
Artist dates        fl. c1870
Medium             Watercolour
Size                   28 x 20 in (71.1 x 50.8 cm)
Date painted     Unknown
​Inscr:                 Signed
Donor                Ellen Halstead 1872-1953
​                          271 Church Road, Lytham St Annes
Date donated    18 December 1944
Picture
THE PAINTING

​This richly colourful painting depicts a young girl in traditional 19th century Syrian dress playing a Syrian qanun, a zither-like instrument, accompanied by her companion who sings and plays a riq, a type of Arabic tambourine. A man in period Arabic costume, smoking a hookah, sits on a sumptuous couch next to a woman, possibly his concubine, waving a leaf-shaped fan. The scene depicts a richly decorated room with a large patterned middle-eastern carpet and a colourful curtain with Arabic lettering pulled back from the entrance through which a palm is visible. Behind the seated couple is an ornately carved piece of wooden furniture, displaying crossed daggers and traditional pots. Intriguing, is the hexagon decoration at the top, seen in the West as the Judaic Star of David but in Islam this represents Solomon’s Seal; Solomon was the son of David and an Islamic prophet.

The painting is one of a series of similar scenes attributed to the same artist.

THE ARTIST


Very little is known about the artist although several sources state that he was a 19th century Italian artist.
He was a prolific painter, proficient in watercolour and gouache. His works frequently appear in sales across the world. A narrative painter, his common themes were oriental scenes, religious figures, romantic and domestic scenes.

​Examples of his work-

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In the Harem
sold at Sothebys in 2011 for 3,750 USD​

Picture
Friars                              
Picture
The Love Letter sold at  Christies in 2000 for £881    
Picture
A Playful Moment signed ‘A. Buzzi’ (lower left)
watercolour 53 x 36cm   -   Bonhams, The Chester Sale 2011
 
Other titles include:

A Serious Discussion with the Cardinal
Courtly Love
The Swiss Guard
An Oriental Carpet Merchant
Afternoon Serenade 
Picture
Achille Buzzi - signature
REFERENCES
​

www.christies.com
www.artnet.com
www.mutualart.com
www.bonhams.com
www.sothebys.com
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