Felix Bonfils Photographs
odd: label: Local Numbers
content: FSA A1997.03
name: label: Photographer
content: Bonfils, Félix, 1831-1885
label: Creator
content: Bonfils, Lydie, 1837-1918
place: label: Place
content: Damascus (Syria)
label: Place
content: Istanbul (Turkey)
label: Place
content: Constantinople (Turkey)
label: Place
content: Turkey -- Istanbul Province -- Constantinople (Istanbul)
label: Place
content: Syria -- Damascus -- Damascus
creator: label: Photographer
content: Bonfils, Félix, 1831-1885
label: Creator
content: Bonfils, Lydie, 1837-1918
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Felix Bonfils was a French photographer who began his professional career as a bookbinder and printer, specializing in photoengravings. After visiting Lebanon as part of Napoleon III's expeditionary corps, in 1867 he became the first French photographer to settle in the Near East. With his wife Lydie, Bonfils established a studio, Maison Bonfils, in Beirut, then part of the Ottoman Empire. Known for his interest in architectural photography, Bonfils traveled widely in the Near East. His 1876 catalog is credited with introducing the genre of Near Eastern photographic portraiture.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 15 Prints (albumen, 22.5 x 28.5 cm sheets.)
unitdate: label: Date
content: undated
custodhist: label: Custodial History
content: Purchased, May 1997.
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives
identifier: label: Identifier
content: FSA.A1997.03
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Prints
label: Type
content: Panoramas
label: Type
content: Photographs
label: Type
content: Albumen prints
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: Organized in two flat boxes.
label: Arrangement
content: First Box: Panoramas of Constantinople
label: Arrangement
content: Second Box: Panoramas of Damascus
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Panoramas
label: Genre/Form
content: Photographs
label: Genre/Form
content: Albumen prints -- 1860-1880
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: Panoramic view in 360 degrees of Constantinople, now Istanbul, Turkey, circa 1870. 10 sheets of albumen print, of which five bear the photographer's signature and number.
label: Scope and Contents
content: Panoramic view of Damascus, Syria, circa 1870. 5 sheets of albumen print, all bearing the photographer's signature and number.