Abstract
Abstract This paper starts by exploring contemporary perceptions of Thomas Dallam (born c. 1570, died after 1614), an English organ maker who is cast as a worthy predecessor of contemporary tourists. After considering the significance of such presentist styling of Dallam as an early 'director′ of an Orientalist gaze, the argument turns to Dallam′s account of his visit to the Ottoman court. While the asymmetry of power relations (Marie Louise Pratt) evident in Dallam′s description has been defused by the text′s popular reception in Britain, this paper participates in contemporary scholarly attempts at recontextualising Dallam′s travel account within its historical setting. A close reading of Dallam′s text establishes it as a poignant example of early modern cultural encounters before Orientalism (Richmond Barbour). Dallam′s text points to specific moments during which the performative character of the encounter disrupts textual closure and binary forms of signification. His account is truly remarkable for its representation of Dallam′s ongoing negotiation of both his experience of cultural encounter and of existing reductive preconceptions about Ottoman culture and society.
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