Description of Egypt by Jean-Jacques Rifaud 1813-1826.
Saffron| N° d'inventaire | 18677 |
| Format | 28 x 38 |
| Détails | 288 p., color illustrations, paperback. |
| Publication | Brussels, 2014 |
| Etat | Nine |
| ISBN | |
For the first time, the lithographic plates known to date that Jean-Jacques Rifaud (1786-1852) devoted to Egypt are published in their entirety. During his long stay in Egypt (nearly thirteen years), confident in himself, he aimed to produce, alone, a publication "Travels in Egypt, Nubia and surrounding places" which would complete the famous "Description of Egypt" produced by the numerous scholars of the French Expedition. This enormous project was one that he was unable to complete, although he did manage to print some 222 plates. On the other hand, the text intended to accompany them never saw the light of day. Like the "Description of Egypt", the plates concern Egyptian antiquities, natural history (botany and zoology) and ethnography. This extraordinary adventurer, one of the pioneers of Egyptology, was one of the first to excavate at Karnak, Fayum, Tanis and the Delta. Egyptologists will find here many of the works he unearthed, which are now in Turin, Paris and Munich, when they have not remained in Egypt. Other plates present the temples of Nubia (absent from the "Description of Egypt") as well as monuments that have now disappeared in the lime kilns during the 19th century. The zoology plates, particularly those devoted to fish, will be of particular interest to naturalists. The ethnography plates stand out significantly from those in the "Description of Egypt", especially those dealing with customs and daily life in Upper Egypt and Lower Nubia. Many antique book libraries hold a few plates from J.-J. Rifaud's work. Bibliophiles and curators of Réserves précieuses will find this work a scientific reference thanks to the commentaries on the plates written by specialists in the various fields concerned.
For the first time, the lithographic plates known to date that Jean-Jacques Rifaud (1786-1852) devoted to Egypt are published in their entirety. During his long stay in Egypt (nearly thirteen years), confident in himself, he aimed to produce, alone, a publication "Travels in Egypt, Nubia and surrounding places" which would complete the famous "Description of Egypt" produced by the numerous scholars of the French Expedition. This enormous project was one that he was unable to complete, although he did manage to print some 222 plates. On the other hand, the text intended to accompany them never saw the light of day. Like the "Description of Egypt", the plates concern Egyptian antiquities, natural history (botany and zoology) and ethnography. This extraordinary adventurer, one of the pioneers of Egyptology, was one of the first to excavate at Karnak, Fayum, Tanis and the Delta. Egyptologists will find here many of the works he unearthed, which are now in Turin, Paris and Munich, when they have not remained in Egypt. Other plates present the temples of Nubia (absent from the "Description of Egypt") as well as monuments that have now disappeared in the lime kilns during the 19th century. The zoology plates, particularly those devoted to fish, will be of particular interest to naturalists. The ethnography plates stand out significantly from those in the "Description of Egypt", especially those dealing with customs and daily life in Upper Egypt and Lower Nubia. Many antique book libraries hold a few plates from J.-J. Rifaud's work. Bibliophiles and curators of Réserves précieuses will find this work a scientific reference thanks to the commentaries on the plates written by specialists in the various fields concerned.