| Method | Lithograph with tint stone |
| Artist | after David Roberts |
| Published | London, Published May 15th. 1856, by Day & Son, Gate Street, Lincoln's Inn Fields |
| Dimensions | Image 122 x 168 mm, Sheet 202 x 285 mm |
| Notes |
Plate 148 from Volume 4 of the small format reprint of Roberts' The Holy Land, Syria, Idumea, Arabia, Egypt & Nubia. A view of the Temple of Maharraqa or Moharka, in the ancient Egyptian region of Nubia. The temple, a simple single-hall structure with a double internal colonnade, was dedicated to the gods Serapis and Isis. It was built at some point in the Roman era, though as it contains no dedicatory inscriptions, it is difficult to determine when. The adjoining settlement was of strategic importance under the reign of Augustus, hosting a Roman garrison against incursions from neighbouring Meroe. The site thus became the most southerly frontier of Roman Egypt. Like many of the monuments of Egyptian Nubia, the temple was relocated and rebuilt in the 1960s to preserve it from the rising water of the Aswan Dam. Although it has since been substantially restored in the modern era, at the time of Roberts' visit, half of the high surrounding wall had collapsed along with a few of the internal columns. The temple is depicted thus in his view, with a small copse of palm trees nearby. David Roberts RA (24th October 1796 – 25th November 1864) was a Scottish painter. He is especially known for a prolific series of detailed prints of Egypt and the Near East produced during the 1840s from sketches made during long tours of the region (1838-1840). This work, and his large oil paintings of similar subjects, made him a prominent Orientalist painter. He was elected as a Royal Academician in 1841. The firm of Day & Haghe was one of the most prominent lithographic companies of the nineteenth-century. They were also amongst the foremost pioneers in the evolution of chromolithography. The firm was established in 1823 by William Day, but did not trade under the moniker of Day & Haghe until the arrival of Louis Haghe in 1831. In 1838, Day & Haghe were appointed as Lithographers to the Queen. However, and perhaps owing to the fact that there was never a formal partnership between the two, Haghe left the firm in the 1850's to devote himself to watercolour painting. The firm continued as Day & Son under the guidance of William Day the younger (1823 - 1906) but, as a result of a scandal involving Lajos Kossuth, was forced into liquidation in 1867. Vincent Brookes bought the company in the same year, and would produce the caricatures for Gibson Bowles' Vanity Fair magazine, as well as the illustrations for Cassells's Poultry Book, amongst other commissions. Condition: Light foxing to margins, not affecting image. |
| Framing | unmounted |
| Price | £30.00 |
| Stock ID | 39099 |