The exhibition oriental weapons "The Mortal Beauty" of private collections in Russia,

[estcrh]

Originally Posted by ariel

The whole idea of the Forum is to exchange objective information ( interspersed, of course, with personal but objective interpretation of the content).

As to prince Saltykov, my opinion about him plummeted down after his badmouthing his host who invited him into his house. Kind of " The food was terrible, and the portions were too small". This is not something I find acceptable.

Ariel, I agree with you as far as exchanging information etc. Sometimes peoples opinions are completely different, in this case it is good to discuss the various sources/references that have formed these opinions. As long as it is an intelligent inquiry and not a personal attack this is an important feature of any forum, the ability to question someones sources, references and personal opinions.

On the matter of Prince Aleksei Dmitrievich Saltykov, I was under the impression that he was writing letters to his brother that were later published into what we are now reading (Lettres sur l'Inde, Author: Soltykoff, Prince Alexis, 1848). Was he actually "bad mouthing" his host or were his original letters just a clear picture of his observations that were not meant for publication. Maybe when published he should have edited what he wrote and removed any offensive remarks, it is hard to second guess now. The various versions of this book do contain some very good images that were supposedly made from his drawing.

[mahratt]

Originally Posted by estcrh

The various versions of this book do contain some very good images that were supposedly made from his drawing.

Yes, Saltykov made a lot of watercolors and pencil drawings while traveling in India. If you are wondering tonight when I'm at home, I can show you some of them.

[estcrh]

Originally Posted by mahratt

Yes, Saltykov made a lot of watercolors and pencil drawings while traveling in India. If you are wondering tonight when I'm at home, I can show you some of them.

If you have images of the painting/drawings that would be great.

[mahratt]

Originally Posted by estcrh

If you have images of the painting/drawings that would be great.

I think it would be correct to create a separate topic on the trip to India Prince Saltykov.

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=21033

[mahratt]

Now back in the exhibition:

[harrywagner]

Thanks for posting this. I love these virtual museum tours. Beautiful work.

[mahratt]

Originally Posted by harrywagner

Thanks for posting this. I love these virtual museum tours. Beautiful work.

I'm glad you like it.