Frederick Arthur Bridgman

Sale: Christie's, London, 17 November 1994, lot 15
Sale: Gros & Delettrez, Paris, 13 December 2010, lot 27

Possibly, Buffalo, New York, Pan-American Exhibition, 1901, no. 218 (as Religious Fete at Blidah)
Nice, Société des Beaux-Arts (a label on the reverse)

Lynne Thornton, Women as Portrayed in Orientalist Painting, Paris, 1985, p. 108, illustrated

The painting is in good condition, clean and ready to hang. The canvas has not been lined. There is a faint horizontal stretcher mark in the centre and a faint pattern of craquelure consistent with an unlined painting of this age. Ultraviolet light reveals notably two circa 4cm vertical repaired tears (each patched on the reverse), one in the lower part of the standing figure's robes, the other in the beige shawl of the seated woman, and a number of scattered minor spots and small strokes of retouching. Under U.V. light there are also some areas of green fluorescence relating to the old residual varnish layers. Presented in an elaborate, richly ornamented gilt frame.
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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."

The Day of the Prophet refers to Mawlid (alternatively spelt Mouloud, Mouled or Maoulide), and is celebrated on the either twelfth or seventeenth day of Rabia al Awal, the third month of the Muslim calendar, roughly coinciding with January.

The history of Mawlid is complex, as the legitimacy of the celebration is questioned. Since the exact birth date of the Prophet is unknown, many Muslims believe that it is an arbitrary date chosen to imitate the Christian celebration of Christmas and as such should not be a religious festival. Sunni scholars tend to agree on its legitimacy, whereas Wahhabi scholars do not. The first references to celebrations on this day refer to ones taking place in eighth-century Mecca; however, they become more common from the late twelfth-century onwards. When the ceremonies were first performed, they were often connected not only with Mohammed, but also with his daughter Fatima, his grandson Husseyn and the local caliph (hence some references to the day of the prophets).  

Early celebrations included torch-lit processions, animal sacrifice, public feasting and sermons. More recently Mawlid is celebrated with public decoration of streets and houses, processions, the distribution of food and charity, singing, dancing and recitations of texts and poetry dedicated to the life of the prophet. People may fast during daylight hours and then eat large communal meals after sundown.

Mawlid also provided a framework for female involvement. Women often participated in the celebrations outside the mosque rituals. The present work shows a congregation of women dressed in their ritual drapery. It was painted a year after Bridgman's larger work of the same subject, depicting Algerian women burning candles in the cemetry of Oued El-Kebir outside Blidah (fig. 1).