Arab Horseman with a Lance in Egypt, Antique Niebuhr Engraving, 1776

This is an original antique copper engraving from 1776, plate XXIX of volume 1 of Carsten Niebuhr's Voyage en Arabie. The caption reads, in Dutch and then in French, Afbeelding der ARABIEREN in Egipte. and Représentation des ARABES en Egypte., meaning "Picture of the Arabs in Egypt".

The plate is dominated by a horseman riding toward the viewer on a pale horse with a long, flowing mane and tail, one foreleg raised in mid stride. The rider is bearded and wears a head cloth and a loose mantle over a long shirt. He carries a long lance across his shoulder, its point reaching out beyond the horse's head, and in one hand holds the stem of a long pipe whose bowl hangs at the horse's flank, trailing smoke. The reins and bridle are drawn in detail. Behind him to the right a second man walks barefoot, wrapped in a mantle with a sash at the waist and a turban on his head, carrying a lance of his own. In the background at the left rise a single pyramid and a rocky peak, and at the right a rocky slope with brush. The ground is open and uneven, with tufts of plants in the foreground.

Under the lower right corner of the image is lettered "C. F. Fritsch, sculp." The plate number Tab. XXIX. is engraved at the upper right.

The sheet comes from the first volume of Carsten Niebuhr's Voyage en Arabie & en d'autres Pays circonvoisins, the Tome Premier, translated from the German and issued at Amsterdam by S. J. Baalde and at Utrecht by J. van Schoonhoven and Comp., with the date MDCCLXXVI on its title page. Niebuhr (1733 to 1815) was a German born surveyor in Danish service and the only member of the Danish expedition to Arabia (1761 to 1767), sent by King Frederick V of Denmark, to return alive.

Light uneven toning, browner toward the edges. Handling soiling along the bottom and top edges. A few small foxing spots in the margin. Slight wear at the bottom right corner.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.