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Kalaat-Esch-Schekif, Beaufort—Vue partielle de l'enceinte sud-ouest (Partial view of the south-west enclosure)

Louis De Clercq

1860

Kalaat-Esch-Schekif, Beaufort—Vue partielle de l'enceinte sud-ouest (Partial view of the south-west enclosure) by Louis De Clercq

Medium

albumen print

Dimensions

image/sheet: 21.3 × 27.7 cm (8 3/8 × 10 7/8 in.) mount: 45.2 × 60.7 cm (17 13/16 × 23 7/8 in.)

Classification

Photograph

Department

CPH

Museum

National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.

Credit

Gift of Robert B. Menschel

Accession Number

2022.154.6

Art Historical Context

Step into the sun-drenched ruins of Kalaat-Esch-Schekif, also known as Beaufort Castle, through Louis De Clercq's captivating 1860 albumen print. This partial view of the south-west enclosure captures the imposing stone walls of this Crusader fortress perched dramatically atop a Lebanese hill overlooking the Litani River. De Clercq, a pioneering French photographer and diplomat, documented such Levantine landmarks during his travels in the 1850s and 1860s, preserving architectural marvels that blended Byzantine, Arab, and Crusader influences. Created via the albumen process—photography's gold...

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