A large German album with 34 albumen prints of Egypt. The Greek brothers G. and C. Zangaki were photographers who worked in Egypt in the second half of the 19th century. Due to increased tourism to this region after the opening of the Suez Canal, there was a large demand for souvenir photographs. Photographers like the Zangaki brothers, as well as Sebah & Joallier, catered to this. The Zangakis were among the first commercial photographers to produce large-scale images of Egypt. They travelled through the country with a portable darkroom to capture high-quality images of famous monuments and daily life, though the latter were usually posed. These images were then printed and sold to tourists, either separately or compiled into albums. According to John Hannavy, the brothers "produced some of the finest images of late Victorian Egypt".
The 34 photographs include: the great pyramid, Cairo and the Nile, dervishes and other exotic looking locals, Egyptians standing on top of the sphinx, obeliscs, the Ramesseum, Karnak temple, the temple of Dendera, the Great Pyramid, Egyptians climbing the pyramid, the mosque and tomb of Muhammad Ali, Saqqara and many others.
With two small library stamps on the first page, not affecting the photograph. The book has been rebacked. The left side of the front board has faded and the corners are worn. Minor browning around the edges of the leaves. Back flyleaf loose. The photos are crisp and clear and the book is otherwise in good condition. Erdem, Views of Egypt by Georgios and Constantinos Zangaki: Examining a late nineteenth-century photographic album at the Art Gallery of Ontario (thesis), 2006; Hannavy, Encyclopedia of Nineteenth Century Photography, pp. 1036, 1093 & 1521.