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Prints · 19th century
The Obelisk of Luxor
David Roberts (1798–1864) · F. G. Moon, London, 1842–49
Artist David Roberts (1798–1864) and Louis Haghe (1806–1885) Technique Tinted lithograph State Standard folio edition Date 1842–49 Dimensions Image size: 13 × 19 inches. Overall: 16½ × 24 inches Condition Mounted with an acid-free mat. Overall very good condition, occasional foxing.
‘Obelisk of Luxor, Dec. 4, 1838’. F. G. Moon, 20 Threadneedle Street, London, 1842–49.
The present plate shows one of the two obelisks that originally stood in front of the Luxor temple. The other had been removed just a few years before Roberts’ visit and transported to France, where it continues to stand in the Place de la Concorde. The hole from which the Paris obelisk (aka the Louis-Philippe obelisk) was excavated is visible in the foreground of the image.
Roberts travelled extensively through the Near East in 1838–39, producing hundreds of sketches which he would later work up into finished drawings, watercolours and, in some instances, oil paintings, which served as the basis for the lithographs produced by the Dutch lithographer Louis Haghe. The original folio publication in the 1840s was in two formats: 1) The Royal Subscription Edition (RSE), in which all of the tinted lithographs were printed on thin paper mounted to card and hand-coloured in watercolour to the specifications of Roberts’ originals. 2) The more plentiful Standard Edition (SE), in which the tinted lithographs were printed directly on thick paper and issued uncoloured, with the option of additional hand-colouring to be added later at the discretion of the purchaser. A few plates, such as the Approach of the Simoon, were polychromatic lithographs, printed in both formats using a multiplicity of stones, though later hand-colouring of highlights is often found in these as well.