Armenian girl with a string instrument in Galata

The photograph shows an Armenian girl in traditional dress with a folk string instrument. It was taken in the Galata district of Constantinople (Istanbul), at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.

The girl is seated, holding the instrument on her knees. She has long braids, an ornamented headscarf and several rows of necklaces. She wears a patterned blouse, a dark waistcoat and a long skirt with a decorated hem. Hay and branches lie on the floor.

This picture shows that song and art were an inseparable part of the Armenian woman's identity.