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Half-length frontal portrait of Ira Aldridge, celebrated nineteenth-century black actor, in the role of Othello. He is dressed in a white wrapper-like garment of which the striped coral-and-white sash is just visible at the bottom of the picture. He has a white lace neckerchief. His eyes look to the left. The plain dark grey background is paler behind his head than it is in the corners of the painting. His close-cropped, parted hair is therefore silhouetted.

Manchester Art Gallery

Manchester

Title

Ira Aldridge as Othello, the Moor of Venice

Date

1826

Medium

oil on canvas

Measurements

H 76.2 x W 63.5 cm

Accession number

1882.2

Acquisition method

transferred from the Royal Manchester Institution, 1882

Work type

Painting

Inscription description

Signiture: right, above shoulder : Js. Northcote / pinxt. / 1826

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Manchester Art Gallery

Manchester Art Gallery, Mosley Street, Manchester, Greater Manchester M2 3JL England

This venue is open to the public. Not all artworks are on display. If you want to see a particular artwork, please contact the venue.

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Artist or maker

James Northcote

1746–1831

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