22. Cour de la Mosquée el Ahzar, au Kaire

Art Historical Context

Joseph-Philibert Girault de Prangey’s 1843 lithograph captures the serene courtyard of Cairo’s Al-Azhar Mosque, one of the oldest centers of Islamic learning in the world. A French architect and pioneering photographer, Girault de Prangey traveled extensively through Egypt and the Near East in the early 1840s, producing some of the first photographic records of these sites before translating many into lithographs for wider audiences back in Europe. The print exemplifies the nineteenth-century fascination with Orientalist imagery while serving a documentary purpose. Rendered with delicate tonal gradations typical of lithography, it highlights the mosque’s elegant arcades and central fountain, inviting viewers to appreciate both architectural harmony and cultural significance. Created just four years after the invention of photography, this work bridges early photographic observation with traditional printmaking, preserving a vivid impression of Cairo for Western audiences. Acquired by the Metropolitan Museum through the Joyce F. Menschel Photography Library Fund, the lithograph reflects Girault de Prangey’s dual role as artist and visual historian, offering modern viewers a rare glimpse of a landmark that remains vital to Islamic scholarship today.

About the Artist

Joseph-Philibert Girault de Prangey · 1804–1892

Joseph-Philibert Girault de Prangey (1804–1892), born in Langres, France, as the sole surviving child of Claude Joseph Girault and Barbe Philiberte Rosine Piétrequin, inherited the lordships of Genevrières and Prangey, adopting his full surname in 1825. After studies at Langres college and in Paris, where he earned baccalauréats in letters (1826) and law (1828), he pursued artistic training under ...