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Dutch-born dancer (1876–1917), nee Margaretha Geertruida Zelle, whose renown as a performer was permanently overshadowed by her activities as a German spy during World War I, which led to her execution by firing squad at the age of 41. World War I-dated matte-finish 3.5 x 5.5 artistic portrait of Mata Hari in an elegant bust-length pose, signed in bold fountain pen, “Lady MacLeod,” the name she used in some of her earliest Paris performances before achieving international fame as Mata Hari, and adding an inscription to the reverse, “A son excellence, Morteza Khan, Paris 27 Octobre 1916.” In fine condition, with light unobtrusive creasing.
Inscribed to Morteza Khan Momtaz al-Molk (1865–1925), a prominent Persian diplomat and statesman who served as Minister of Public Instruction from 1916 to 1917, this striking portrait dates to the final year of Mata Hari's freedom. Signed as “Lady MacLeod,” the surname acquired through her marriage to Dutch colonial officer Rudolf MacLeod and a name she used during her earliest Paris performances before achieving international fame as Mata Hari, the inscription places this portrait at a fascinating intersection of her personal and public identities.
By October 1916, Europe was engulfed in the First World War, and Mata Hari was moving among military officers, diplomats, and intelligence contacts across the continent. Less than four months later, French authorities arrested her on charges of espionage; following a highly publicized military trial, she was executed by firing squad on October 15, 1917. Her case remains one of the most debated espionage prosecutions of the First World War.
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