Egypt: Yesterday And Today [Hardcover]

Fabio bourbon (Author), Antonio Attini (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 1996

Lithographs of Pharanonic Egypt and the mosques of Cairo are accompanied by current photographs.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

In the early part of the nineteenth century, Scotsman David Roberts produced numerous views of extraordinary Egyptian sites in carefully rendered, beautifully expressive lithographs. Lavishly produced, this large-format book highlights the diaries kept by Roberts as well as his remarkable body of artwork, which so lyrically captured Egypt's celebrated monuments and timeless landscapes. In a fascinating juxtaposition, photographer Antonio Attini contributes recent photographs depicting each subject Roberts interpreted so many years earlier. These contemporary visions of such historically rich settings offer intriguing counterpoints to the grand scale of the reproductions included here. Alice Joyce

About the Author

David Roberts (1796-1864) was one of the most acclaimed landscape painters of his time. He made an extended trip to Egypt and the Holy Land in 1838-39, during which he made the series of drawings that brought him lasting fame.
--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 271 pages
• Publisher: Stewart, Tabori and Chang; First edition (November 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1556705182
• ISBN-13: 978-1556705182
• Product Dimensions: 14.2 x 10.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,228,008 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A gorgeous book and a handy reference, October 6, 2000

By 

K. Maxwell "katmax1" (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Egypt: Yesterday And Today (Hardcover)

This book gives great colour reproductions of each of David Roberts prints from his 1842 edition of "egypt and Nubia". Each print out of these collectors editons are produced in sequence, along with notes from his diary. The author of this book has also included notes on each temple/monument and it's history. Alongside David Roberts prints are modern colour photos showing the same site today.

This is an illuminating book. It shows how much the egyptian monuments have changed in the last 150 years. Not always for the better. The island of philae is shown with it's monuments all brightly coloured with the orginal paint. Today they have been stripped bare back to the stone by the waters of the Aswan dam.

Many of the monuments Roberts shows in here are partially covered by sand and it is interesting to see how different they look when they have been fully excavated, or in the case of the nubian monuments - quite literally picked up and moved.

For anybody interested in ancient egypt, 19th century travel or lovely monumental art this book is a must. This is also the best place to see these prints for most people as the cost of the original prints these days is wildly expensive. You get the beauty without the cost...

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating look at the the wonders of Egyptian ruins, December 7, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Egypt: Yesterday And Today (Hardcover)

As a lover of Egyptian history and of the works of the 19th century artist, David Roberts, this book shows the before and after of these ancient sites after excavation as never seen before. The wonderful and romantic images from Roberts as were first seen when he travelled to Egypt, are contrasted with current photographs of the same sites. Although saving these monuments to the ancient past is most important to the world , one can't help but to wish to come upon these wonders when Roberts captured them in his drawings. Truely a must for anyone who has been to Egypt, or simply wants to arm travel through history.A large book with full color plates.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Gem of Egypt, February 9, 2004

By 

Arthur J. Rush "Arthur" (San Diego Ca) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Egypt: Yesterday and Today (Hardcover)

This is a wonderful souvenir of Egypt, even if you haven't actually been there.

I picked up this book in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo last week while on a trip there. Of course it is cheaper on Amazon, but the shipping would have killed me as I live out of the country now.

The highlight, apart from the obvious beauty of the lithographs, is we can see what the temples were like just a couple hundred years ago. Startling features of the `then' drawings include how the temples were only partly excavated although flush with colorful painting still on the columns and glyphs. Roberts also included portraits of the Egyptian in the temples illustrating the costumes of the time and lending proper perspective to the grandiosity of the structures.

After just having finished a 10-day tour of Egypt, I long to go back in time to see the temples the way Roberts had. The `now' pictures offer the contrasting full excavation, but also the diminished color and detail of their painting as they stand today.

I bought this book on my last day in Cairo, holding off purchasing anything until I found THE thing and after surveying all of the other available books on Egypt, not just in the museum bookshop, but in all of the books shops I encountered. This is by far the most beautiful and memorable souvenir one could have. If you haven't been but have any interest in Egypt's beauty and mystery this book will suit you just as well as the seasoned traveler.

What it lacks in factual information (not the book's focus) it makes up for by capturing the imagination of not only an ancient time gone by, but also a more recent past of true exploration no longer available to us in the global village.