"Aleppo", Bruyn, Cornelius de

The city of Aleppo, built around the Citadel of Aleppo, is depicted in this magnificent panorama. Aleppo was the terminus of the famous Silk Road, the major trade route between Europe and Asia. A caravan laden with silks from Persian and other exotic goods is shown on the road in the foreground. Cornelius de Bruyn (1652-1726) was a Dutch artist who traveled through the Holy Land and other portions of Asia. De Bruyn had to disguise his activities because this was a repressive period during the Ottoman rule when foreigners were regarded with suspicion and the making of "graven images" was prohibited. De Bruyn avoided detection by pretending to be picnicking with two Franciscan monks who stood guard while he made his drawings. His works are particularly historically valuable because of their accuracy. Printed from two plates on two joined sheets, as issued.

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Condition: A

A fine impression and condition with some crumpling in margins. There are some expert repairs on the folds and in the blank margins, included a few lines of facsimile at upper right.