Plate 169 Front Elevation Of The Great Temple Of Abu Simbel After David Roberts
Roberts described Aboo Simbel as 'the monument which alone makes the trip to Nubia worthwhile'. (1) Writing in his journal on the 9th November 1838 (the day he drew the drawing for this lithograph) Roberts said that 'the beauty and size of the temple are not surpassed by any other Egyptian monument, even the Theban sanctuaries. If it is compared with the heads of Isis decorating the capitals of the Temple of Dendera, the most elaborate and best finished of the Egyptian temples, the poor goddess actually seems coarse. And to think that Dendera is far more recent than Abu Simbel!' (2)
The temple has a facade that is 125 feet wide and is 100 feet high which astonishingly is the same as a modern nine-storey building. (3) The four statues displayed in the lithograph (one is on the floor) are over 65 feet tall and each depict Ramses II with the crowns of Upper and Lower Egypt. It is an incredible architectural achievement by Ancient Egypt and one that Roberts was clearly in awe of. This work is one of his iconic drawings from his tour.
The drawings and watercolours from this sketching tour by David Roberts of the Holy Land and Egypt were collated together into folios and released over a seven year period between 1842 and 1849 by the publisher F.G. Moon from 20 Threadneedle Street London. This lithograph is an original First Edition version and was published on the 1st August 1848. Louis Haghe (the Belgian lithographer and friend of Roberts) oversaw and produced all of the lithographs for this series.
Medium: Original First Edition Lithograph, Full Plate, hand coloured on thick woven paper.
Full Plate 169.
Inscribed l.l. 'David Roberts R.A., L Hagh lith', l.r. 'Front elevation of The Great Temple of aboosimble, nubia', 32.7 x 48.5 cm (picture size), mounted.
Provenance: Sanders of Oxford, bought in 2014.
References:
(1) Fabio Bourbon (ed). Yesterday and Today: Egypt. Swan Hill Press: London, 1996, p.68. Translated by A.B.A., Milano.
(2) David Roberts' journal from the Holy Land and Egypt.
(3) Fabio Bourbon (ed). Yesterday and Today: Egypt. Swan Hill Press: London, 1996, p.68. Translated by A.B.A., Milano.