[Photograph album of Palestine].

Large 4to (240 x 273 mm). 48 albumen photographs (ca. 240 x 180 mm) mounted on card recto and verso. Bound in contemporary black half calf and cloth, ruled in gilt. An elegant example of the early photography souvenirs which were becoming increasingly popular in the 1890s, especially in tourism of the Holy Land. Many of the photographs are by the studio of F lix Bonfils (1831-85), a French-born photographer who came to the Levant with General d'Hautpoul in 1860 and remained to begin a prolific photography career. Based in Beirut, Bonfils produced thousands of photographs depicting Palestine, Egypt, Syria, Greece and other parts of the Ottoman Empire. In the early days of Western tourism to the Middle East, his works soon became popular as souvenirs, and other photographers soon followed. Other examples are by Francis Frith or unsigned. They show memorable scenes of Jerusalem and surroundings, especially tombs, monuments, churches, mosques, landscapes, and cityscapes. - Gentle wear and fading, some foxing to cards, but generally appealing and well preserved.