Triumph. 1872 Vasily Vereshchagin (1842-1904)

Description of Vasily Vereshchagin’s painting "Triumphant"

Central Asia. Ancient Samarkand, Registan Square. It is now a national treasure, but on the canvas it is simply a square where people have always flocked to learn something new, or to celebrate an event. On the canvas of the Russian painter Vereshchagin is just a celebration related to the victory over the enemy. It does not matter which one, it is important to show how it all happened.

We must begin with the most frightening element of the celebration. A row of poles ran across the square, with the heads of killed enemies sticking out from the top of each pole. As the Indians were scalped, here the head was simply cut off either during the fight (the head was a trophy), or already from the prisoner (if no one had taken it as a slave).

In the very center of the square, a circle of righteous and strong men was formed. If the seats in the circle were occupied, people would ride up to the circle on horses or donkeys and look from this height at the events inside the circle. In the circle itself there would be performances. They could be acrobats, masqueradeurs, fakirs or tightrope walkers. Sometimes in the center there was a witticism, which delighted the ears of listeners with a cheerful talk, or with a simple story about military prowess of the ancestors.

Vereshchagin conveyed exactly the atmosphere that was there at those moments on the square. Despite the heat, there were always a lot of people. But it is interesting that the artist was able to observe the main condition of any Muslim. The faith forbids painting people’s faces. And not to offend anyone, the painter didn’t begin to put anyone’s face on the canvas, he just turned everybody’s back to the audience, as if unobtrusively inviting them to have a look into the circle.

Of course, the artist had sketches and paintings where faces were drawn, but on this particular canvas, the Koranic rule was irreproachable. Maybe it was meant that way, or maybe the painter really knew about the condition.