When Napoleon Bonaparte invaded Egypt in 1798, he brought with him an entourage of more than 160 scholars and scientists. Known as the French Commission on the Sciences and Arts of Egypt, these experts undertook an extensive survey of the country’s archeology, topography, and natural history. A soldier who was part of the expedition found the famous Rosetta Stone, which the French linguist and scholar Jean-François Champollion (1790-1832) later used to unlock many of the mysteries that long had surrounded the language of ancient Egypt. In 1802 Napoleon authorized the publication of the commission’s findings in a monumental, multi-volume work that included plates, maps, scholarly essays, and a detailed index. Publication of the original Imperial edition began in 1809. It proved so popular that a second edition was published under the post-Napoleonic Bourbon Restoration. The “Royal edition” (1821-29) from the collections of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina is presented here.
<br>Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1769-1821; Natural history
Commission des sciences et arts d'Egypte
1826<div style="display: none;">date QS:P571,+1826-00-00T00:00:00Z/9</div>
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