Dame de Constantinople, from Recueil de diverses fig.res étrangeres Inventées par F. Boucher P.tre du Roy et Gravées par F. Ravenet (Collection of Various Foreign Figures, Devised by F. Boucher, Painter of the King and Engraved [etched] by F. Ravenet), plate 5 1721 - 1774

This etching by Simon Francis Ravenet, the elder, depicts a "Dame de Constantinople". Note how the "Dame" is adorned in furs and rich fabrics; these materials were understood as symbols of wealth and status. The figure’s dress draws from a tradition of representing exoticism, yet the figure is grounded in European aristocratic fashion. Her headdress, with its exaggerated form, echoes those found in Renaissance portraits, signaling power and authority. Consider, too, how this echoes the recurring motif of the 'exotic other' found throughout art history—from Orientalist paintings to modern fashion. The act of dressing in foreign attire allows one to play with identities and blur cultural boundaries. This image reflects the fascination and simultaneous distancing from other cultures, embodying a complex interplay of desire, fear, and assimilation. These cross-cultural appropriations are less linear than cyclical, appearing throughout history, echoing and shifting with each new context.