Village of Maidos, Dardanelles 

Muirhead Bone made this pencil drawing of the Village of Maidos, Dardanelles. It shows the simple buildings of this village in Turkey under the shadow of the mills overlooking it. But to understand this image more fully, we need to consider the moment in which it was produced. Bone was an official war artist during the First World War. His drawings were used as propaganda, carefully crafted to shape public opinion and promote support for the war effort. The village of Maidos was a key site during the Gallipoli campaign. Bone’s image offers a seemingly neutral depiction of the location, yet it subtly highlights the strategic importance of the landscape for military operations. Historians use sources like military archives, personal letters, and contemporary news reports, alongside art historical analysis, to fully understand the politics of imagery and the social conditions that shape artistic production, giving a deeper insight into the public role of art.