Synopsis
From street scenes to portraits, landscapes to architectural studies, this fascinating collection of photographs allows us to glimpse a time and way of life now Ottoman Syria, Palestine, and Egypt in the latter half of the nineteenth century.
P. Felix Bonfils was the first French photographer, and one of the first European photographers, to settle in the Near East, establishing a studio in Beirut in 1867. He is credited with introducing the genre of Near Eastern photographic portraiture, and the selection published here, taken by Felix, his wife Lydie, and his son Adrien, includes remarkable portraits of Bedouin, Ottoman officials, Shiite Muslims, and village peasants, as well as examples of the clothing worn by different sections of society. While many of these and other pictures were posed and made use of models, and while some have been criticized for pandering to the taste for the exotic prevalent in Europe at the time, the Bonfils collection is nevertheless an invaluable social record, containing many sensitive ethnographic portraits and objective and unobtrusive field-shots.
The Bonfils landscapes, panoramic views, and architectural studies of Near Eastern cities and monuments are also important historical records of places and buildings that have deteriorated,
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Other Popular Editions of the Same Title
Search results for In Arab Lands The Bonfils Collection of the University...
Seller Image
In Arab Lands The Bonfils Collection of the University of Pennsylvania Museum
Published by
Zeitouna Press, Cairo, Egypt, 1999
ISBN 10: 977586402X
ISBN 13: 9789775864024
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: S. Howlett-West Books (Member ABAA), Modesto, CA, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Near Fine. 1st Edition; 1st Printing. B&W and Color Illustrations; This edition was published in 1999 in Cairo, Egypt. The book in Fine condition and has clamshell case. Possible True First Edition - published prior to the 2000 issue by the American University in Cairo. Both case and front cover of the book have photographic pastedowns. The book and its contents are in clean, bright condition. The text pages are clean and bright. The clamshell case in Very Good+ condition and has several spots of light discoloration / rubbing. "Félix Bonfils (8 March 1831 1885) was a French photographer and writer who was active in the Middle East. He was born in Saint-Hippolyte-du-Fort and died in Alès. Félix worked as a bookbinder but in 1860 he joined General d'Hautpoul's expedition to the Levant. Soon after returning from Lebanon he became a photographer. When his son Adrien fell ill, Félix remembered the green hills around Beirut and sent him there to recover, being accompanied by Marie-Lydie Cabanis Bonfils, Félix's wife. The family moved to Beirut in 1867 where they opened a photographic studio called "Maison Bonfils." " (from Wikipedia) Due to the extreme weight of this book, postage will have to be determined at time of ordering. Seller Inventory # A43098