"Tyrus", Bruyn, Cornelius de

Tyre is a port town in the south of Lebanon, and is famous for being the mythical birthplace of Europa and Elissa. This view shows the ancient Roman ruins along the coastline, with numerous small ships in the Mediterranean.

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.

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Condition: B+

Folding, as issued with a some creasing along one fold. Soiling in blank margins and a portion of lower blank margin has been repaired with old paper.