Description

Károly Markó the Elder was a painter whose art was rooted in the historical and idealized landscape painting traditions of the 17th and 18th centuries. In his landscapes, he depicted idyllic scenes from everyday life, the Bible, or mythology. One such mythological theme appears in "Rhodopis’s Shoe" (1835), which tells the story of a Greek slave girl. According to the anecdote, while the girl was bathing, an eagle snatched her sandal and carried it off to Memphis. At that moment, the king of the Lower Egyptian city was administering justice when the eagle dropped the 'loot' at his feet. The ruler found the sandal so beautiful that he refused to rest until he found its owner. He sent his men throughout the country to search for the woman who wore the sandal. Eventually, they traced the girl to the city of Naucratis and brought her to Memphis, where the king married her.

In Markó’s meticulously detailed painting, the miniature-like depiction of the nude mythological figures and the classically structured landscape composition appear in harmonious unity. The objective and detailed portrayal of natural elements in the work lends *Rhodopis’s Shoe* an almost realistic quality. On the back of the painting, in the top left corner, an inscription announces that Markó’s painting was exhibited at the 1937 Hungarian Biedermeier exhibition at the Műcsarnok (Art Hall at the Budapest Heroes square), and that the painting was once owned by “His Excellency Mr. Fülöp Weisz (37 Fillér Street, Budapest).” A work of this kind by Markó has not previously appeared, which is why *Rhodopis’s Shoe* is considered a true rarity on the Hungarian art market.

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