Young man wearing a plumed turban, facing right, from the series of 'Small Heads in Oriental Headdress' 1640 - 1650

Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione, also known as Il Grechetto, created this print of a young man in oriental headdress, sometime in the mid-17th century. Castiglione was a virtuoso printmaker in Genoa, Italy. He was innovative and highly productive making over 300 prints over the course of his career. This etching is one of a series of “small heads” depicting figures in elaborate headgear. What are we to make of this fascination with exoticism? Genoa was a major port city. Castiglione's Orientalizing imagery reflects Genoa’s extensive trade links with the East. This interest in the Orient coincided with a time when European powers were vying for maritime dominance and engaging in cultural exchange and also colonial exploitation. To understand Castiglione’s image fully, we can research not only the artist and his Genoese context but also the history of European trade with the East and the cultural impact of encounters between Europeans and people of the Ottoman Empire.