NARCISSE BERCHÈRE (1819-1891)

NARCISSE BERCHÈRE (1819-1891)
Animated view of Tel el-Kébir, Egypt, 1862
Oil on panel
Signed and dedicated 'à Mr F[erdinand] de Lesseps' lower left
Located and dated '1862' lower right
Oil on panel, signed and dedicated 'à Mr F[erdinand] de Lesseps' lower left, located and dated '1862' lower right
32 x 47,5 cm - 12 5/8 x 18 3/4 in.

Provenance
- Ferdinand de Lesseps Collection, France
- Sale, 'Arts d'Orient, Tableaux orientalistes', Tajan, Paris, Espace Tajan, November 24, 2005, lot 190 (titled 'Tell el Kébir' and erroneously dated '1867')
- Private collection, France (acquired at previous sale, then by descent)

Note
According to Narcisse Berchère's 'Le désert de Suez, Cinq mois dans l'Isthme', this work was a gift from the artist to Ferdinand de Lesseps, President of the Compagnie de Suez, on the occasion of his visit 'en carrosse' to Tel el-Kébir at the end of January 1862.

Related work
This work served as a model for an engraving by Grenet that appeared in 'Le Tour du Monde' published in 1863 under the direction of Édouard Charton (p. 8).