After prayer

Painted in 1889, the present work belongs to a series of works which share the same theme, 'After the prayer', as painted by Ernst in numerous of his works. The setting depicts a mosque in Ottoman Turkey, and while it is not clear if Ernst's figures are entering or exiting the prayer hall, he has depicted them with great precision and details. Ernst exhibited a painting of the same subject, entitled Après la prière, in the Paris Salon of 1922.