| Method | Lithograph with tint stone |
| Artist | after David Roberts |
| Published | London, Published March. 15th 1856, by Day & Son, Gate Street, Lincoln's Inn Fields |
| Dimensions | Image 126 x 165 mm, Sheet 200 x 285 mm |
| Notes |
Plate 123 from Volume 3 of the small format reprint of Roberts' The Holy Land, Syria, Idumea, Arabia, Egypt & Nubia. A view of the waterfront of Suez, Egypt. The town of Suez has a long history, serving a strategic role in Red Sea trade since its refounding in the 7th century AD. By the time of Roberts' journey, the town had fallen into decay due to continual fighting between the British and French following the Napoleonic conquest. The Suez canal, first opened in 1869, brought new life back to the town and transformed it into a strategic economic centre once more. Roberts' view shows a range of Mamluk half-timbered buildings along the water, as well as the tower of a mosque. 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 | £25.00 |
| Stock ID | 39036 |