Plate 227 The Holy Tree of Metereah - After David Roberts

Roberts drew this composition on the 20th January 1839. He wrote in his journal 'Sunday - Having hired a donkey and a boy, I visited the celebrated sycamore-tree under which the blessed Virgin and infant Saviour are said to have taken shelter on their arrival in Egypt. It stands int eh middle of an orchard, and close by a small village called Matarieh.
 
After carving my name on the bark and cutting off a twig for Christine, I made a sketch. The wind, which had been blowing strong, increased to a perfect hurricane, and I proceeded about half-a-mile further on to a solitary obelisk, being all that now remains of Heliopolis.' [1]
 
'The large village of Matariyah (modern name), situated seven and a half miles from Cairo, is still famous today for the chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The sacred tree stands right in front of it, in the middle of a garden with a spring that, according to legend, gushed forth at the command of the baby Jesus. This legend is associated with a far older cult; in nearby Heliopolis, at the time of the great sanctuary of Rameses, there was a sacred tree under which Isis was supposed to have suckled the baby Horus.' [2]
 
The drawings and watercolours from this tour by David Roberts of the Holy Land and Egypt were collated together into folios and released over a seven-year period by the publisher F.G. Moon from 20 Threadneedle Street London. This lithograph was published on July 1st 1849.
 
Medium: Original First Edition Lithograph, with later hand-colouring on thick woven paper.
 
Half Plate 227.
 
Inscribed l.l. 'David Roberts R.A. L Haghe Lith' and l.r. 'The Holy Tree Metereah', 34.8 x 23.8cm (lithograph size), mounted (50.9 x 40.4cm).
 
The original title is visible through a cut out on the mount 'The Holy Tree of Metereah' and the original text from the publication in 1849 is included attached to the back of the mount.
 
References:
 
[1] David Roberts's Journal, 20th January 1839 entry.
 
[2] Fabio Bourbon (ed). Yesterday and Today: Egypt. Swan Hill Press: London, 1996, p.260. Translated by A.B.A. Milano.
 
Condition report: very good for its age. A few small markings, please see photos. Recently put into a new acid free mount.