Bonfils Collection, In Arab Lands.

Condition : very good, cover and box slightly stained, otherwise as new.
Illustrations : 3 black and white plates in the text, 54 plates, 12 in colour, out of the text.
Binding : black cloth board with photographic collage in its box.
Format : 30 x 43 cm.
Pages : 27 pp., 44 plates.
Publisher : Cairo, Zeitouna.
Date : 1999.

This collection of photographs provides an overview of Ottoman Syria, Palestine and Egypt in the second half of the 19th century. The photographs reveal details of clothing, customs and lifestyles.
Maison Bonfils was founded by Felix Bonfils, a 19th century photographer who became famous for his views of the Near East. Bonfils began his professional life as a bookbinder and printer. In 1867, he left his native France to settle in Beirut where he opened a photography studio. In 1876, he published his first catalogue with more than 500 views of the Eastern Mediterranean, as well as more than 130 ethnographic portraits. His studio was the most prolific and successful commercial photographic enterprise in the Near East at the time. Bonfils' photographs are today considered historical documents, scientific records, works of art and commercial products.