Freeman Institute® Rosetta Stone History Collection

GENUINE ARTIFACTS AND DOCUMENTS -- Many items will be utilized in the design of the Rosetta Stone Traveling Exhibit project:

-- 185 extremely rare original plates/prints ( from "Description de l'Égypte" from the Napoleonic Egyptian Campaign, circa 1820. These official plates/prints came from a huge lot sold in an auction in 2001, Paris -- the seller was the French Government -- from the cellars of the French Government Publications Office. Each one has the official "EGYPTE ANCIENNE ET MODERNE" watermark. Average plate/print size is 29" x 22 ". Some of the plates in this collection are 56 inches long!

BACKGROUND of Description de l'Égypte: In 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte launched an expedition of 35,000 soldiers to conquer Egypt. The campaign revealed the splendor of a mysterious and forgotten civilization, for Napoleon's ships also carried scholars, scientists and artists whose task it was to study the country and its customs and document their findings for Napoleon. (Description de l'Égypte was the result of the collaboration of these prominent scholars, several famous European scientists, cartographers, topographers, and more than 160 artists and technicians. They accompanied Napoleon's army during Napoleon's expedition to Egypt in 1798. Their goal was to methodically collect information in areas as widely varied as architecture, geography, botany and the humanities. Description de l'Égypte was published in 23 volumes from 1809 to 1828 and includes 900+ plates.) They were the biggest books ever produced in their day, and were made on a specially constructed press. The first volumes of engravings were presented to Napoleon in 1808. The beauty of engravings, and their very large formats makes Description de l'Égypte an exceptional work. The low number of copies made (~1000), its extremely high price, and very large physical size made the work accessible only to the very elite of society at that time. Even today, finding a complete copy is not easy. Only major libraries or state libraries are in the possession of such. Regions depicted/represented by the official plates in Dr. Freeman's collection are: Thebes, Karnak, El Kab, Medynet-Abou, Hypogees, Elethyia, Heptanomide, Beny-Hasan, Tentyris, Memnonium, Byban El Molouk, Latopolis, Ile de Philae, Edfou, Louqsor and much, much more

-- Two Copper engravings (22"x9" -- Battle Plan for Alexandria and Map of Nile) titled, "Plan of the Action of the 21st. of March Fought near ALEXANDRIA, by the French under General Menou, and the English under Sir Ralph Abercrombie" and also "A Map of the Western Branch of the Nile from the Latest Authorities". Issued in 1803 as part of Robert Thomas Wilson's "History of the British Expedition to Egypt To which is Subjoined a Sketch of the Present State of That Country and its Means of Defence".

-- Two extremely rare First Edition French volumes, "Complete Summary of Archaeology" by Jean Champollion-Figeac Published in Paris, 1825 and 1826, just a few years after he cracked the code to hieroglyphics in 1822). Divided into volumes. First: Monuments of architecture, Sculpture and Painting, including/understanding constructions of any kind, the statues, low-reliefs, figurines, tombs, furnace bridges, vases painted, mosaic, etc...with an introduction historical and finished by a vocabulary divides into volumes. Second: Containing the treaties on the engraved stones, the inscriptions, the medals, the utensils crowned and common, movable, weapons, etc, followed by the biographies of the most famous antique dealers, archéologieque bibliography and of a vocabulary.

-- Hardbound Volume IV of  American Quarterly Review (September and December, 1828). This 546 page book contains reviews of historical, scientific, and travel literature published by Carey, Lea & Carey, Chesnut Street, Philadelphia; 546 pages. Twenty-six of those pages are dedicated to reviewing Jean Champollion's May/June 1827 article published in the Bulletin Universal entitled, "Apercu des Resultats Historiques de la decouverte de l'alphabete Hieroglyphique Egyptienne" par M. Champollion le Jeune.

-- Magnificent extremely rare plate/print (one of 511 plates), expertly backed with linen, of Thutmose III from the monumental 1843 work of Jean Champollion, the first to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphs (20" x 27").

-- Rare First Edition copy of "L'Univers Pittoresque. Egypte Ancienne" by M. Champollion-Figeac (Jean Champollion), Paris, Firmin Didot, 1839. It contains 92 illustrations and an antique folding map of Egypt. First few pages have some foxing, with the rest in excellent condition. 500 pp., & 92 plates,1/2 maroon morocco with 5 raised bands & leather label, marbled bds. & endpapers.

-- Very scarce First Edition, Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum, 1862. Details 250 exhibits. Published by Smith, 196 pages. Excellent condition. In fact, it appears to be unread. Over 6 pages, with three diagrams, dedicated to the Rosetta Stone.

-- A genuine issue of the January 7th, 1799 Connecticut Courant, detailing the "Landing of Buonaparte's (sic) army in Egypt" and its progress in Cairo. Fascinating content.

-- Authentic issue of the Salem Gazette (Dec. 7, 1798), containing a literal translation of General Napoleon Buonaparte's (sic) proclamation to the Arabs in Lower Egypt. Intriguing content.

-- July 14, 1801 issue of the New England Palladium describing the capture of Rosetta, Egypt by British troops. The report comes from Major General J. H. Hutchinson. "It is with great pleasure that I am to inform you of the success of a corps of Turks and British under the command of Col. Spencer. They were ordered from hence about ten days ago, for the purpose of forcing the enemy from the town and castle of Rosetta, which commands the navigation of the Nile.

-- Description de l'Egypte, Rosetta Environs. Folio Sheet size: 55cm x 72cm. It has the Napoleonic "Sphinx" cartouche it the upper corner of the sheet. Not a reproduction or re-strike of any kind. This print was purchase nearly 40 years ago in Cairo. From: Description de l'Egypte ou recueil des observations et des recherches qui ont ete faites en Egypte pendant l'Expedition de l'Armee francaise. Dediee au Roi. France: Commission des sciences et arts d'Egypte. The completed work fills twenty-three volumes and contains engravings depicting 3,000 individual images. Description de L'Egypte documents many aspects of Egypt's history and culture and has sections devoted to antiquities, the modern state, and natural history. An atlas supplements the text. Description de L'Egypte was intended for an academic audience, and many copies of the first edition were distributed directly to institutions. However, it was clear even before the original production was complete that the title had a much broader appeal. The descriptions of Egyptian antiquities and religious monuments satisfied a curiosity about ancient cultures, religion, and mythology that had been sparked by the Romantic movement.

-- A fine 1719 original, copperplate engraved views of the Pyramids and of the Sphinx, Giza, Egypt, with engraved cursive commentary as borders: Description des Piramides d'Egypte . . . Avec une Description tres Curieuse du Sphinx, from Chatelain, Henri Abraham, Atlas Historique..., Volume 6, Amsterdam: . First edition. Excellent condition, heavy paper, crisp dark impression; uncolored as always (any color seen in these images/maps is applied by modern hands.) Dimensions: 17 1/2" x 21 1/4" (overall).

-- We are now masters of the western branch of that river, and of course have opened a communication with the Delta, from which we shall derive the necessary supplies, as the French have scarcely any troops there, and none capable of making a serious resistance. The enemy had about 800 men at Rosetta when they were attacked. They made but a feeble effort to sustain themselves, and retired to the right bank of the Nile, leaving a few men and prisoners. They left a garrison at the fort, against which our batteries opened on the 16th infantry and it surrendered on the 19th infantry. The condition of the same as were granted to the castle of the Aboukir..."

-- In August 1799, just over a year after Napoleon launched his invasion of Egypt at Alexandria, a great discovery was made. Under the leadership of Lt. Pierre Bouchard, French soldiers were building up their defenses around the area of Fort St. Julian, near the northern city of Rosetta, when a soldier or engineer found in the ruins an ancient stone. With its cryptic inscriptions, it was immediately recognized as an object of great importance. It was sent to Cairo, where it was housed in the Institute d’Egypte. Members of Napoleon’s special civilian corps dispersed around the country were requested to go there at once. The rare map to the right is of the mouth of the Nile, picturing Fort Julian, now known as Fort Rashid.

-- A three-volume 1803 English edition (quite rare) of "Travels in Upper and Lower Egypt During the Campaigns of General Bonaparte in That Country", written and illustrated by Vivant Denon, published by T.N. Longman & O. Rees (London). In the spring of 1797, with a direct assault against Britain out of the question, Napoleon Bonaparte suggested threatening Britain's rich commerce with India by invading Egypt. A unique feature of the expedition, which set sail on 19 May 1798, was the large number and high caliber of the attached civilians, among them Baron Dominique Vivant Denon (1747-1825). Denon was one of the founders of the Louvre Museum, and was responsible for saving many works of art and monuments of French culture from destruction during the French Revolution. Denon was entrusted by Napoleon to assemble a team of artists, archeologists, linguists and scholars to study the antiquities of Egypt for the first time since Antiquity. In addition to assisting in the formulation of practical measures for the rule of Egypt, the 167 savants accompanied the army to every corner of the country. Protected by the French troops, Denon was able to explore the country extensively. This book contains many etchings of Egypt, including the famous etching of the Sphinx of Giza prior to the defacement.

BACKGROUND: In the south, Vivant Denon reached Assouan; from Keneh he went to Kosseir. Their studies of the great monuments of ancient Egypt paved the way for the science of Egyptology. It was during this expedition that the Rosetta Stone was found, which ultimately enabled people to decipher and translate ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. Denon's book was the first important fruit of the French expedition to Egypt. This is an early English translation of the work (apparently the first English edition was printed a year earlier), and contains a wealth of beautiful fold-out plates and maps, including contemporary scenes from Denon's travels, plans of ruins, engravings of the monuments and reproductions of some of the art in the ruins and temples. Contemporary half leather binding with marbled boards and edges. 392, 312, 366pp. illustrated with 57 engraved plates and maps. 8vo (standard sized book). CONDITION: Good to Very Good. All volumes: Rubbing and edge wear to boards and spine. Hinges cracked. Front board of Volume 1 loose but not yet detached. Split to center of spine of Volume 2, binding still okay. Missing 5 plates, but has 2 uncalled for. Some sunning to page. Varying foxing to pages and plates, some plate just at edges, others have some spots to plates themselves. A few plates have tape repairs to reverse. Scattered dirt spots to pages. In general a tidy set, all text pages present, and text clear and readable, foxing to margins of text pages only.

--  First Edition (American) book by Gaston Maspero, "The Dawn of Civilization / Egypt and Chaldea", 1894 (400 images)

--  First Edition (London) book by Joseph Pollard, "The Land of the Monuments: Notes of Egyptian Travel", 1896

--  March, 1873 Harper's Weekly article by Rev. William Hayes Ward, "Our Debt to Cadmus: Hieroglyphics"

--  Original British Museum booklets, "History of the Rosetta Stone", written by Wallis Budge. Printed by Harrison and Sons, London) -- Four editions: 1922, 1939, 1951,1974)

--  "Ancient History: Egyptian..." by Charles Rollin, 1854

--  "The Hebrew Bible, With Respect to Egypt" (incl. maps), by Robert, Lord Bishop of Clogher. Printed for J Warcus, London, 1760 (3rd Edition, Corrected), 493 pages, bound with full original full calf leather.

--  "The Story of the Nations: Ancient Egypt", by George Rawlinson, First Edition, 1887, with many illustrations.

--  French edition of "L' Archeologie Egyptienne" by Gaston Maspero, 1887. Rare, with many illustrations.

--  Leeds, England newspaper article erroneously announcing the death of Napoleon in Egypt. Intriguing.

-- Lettre Ecrites D'Egypte et de Nubie en 1828 et 1829, by Champollionn le Jeune (Letters Written in Egypt and Nubia in 1828 and 1829 by Francois Champollion) with all illustrations intact. This very, very rare First Edition by the translator of Egyptian Hieroglyphics is seldom seen on the open market. Most copies are in large University or Public library rare book collections. This work is an important insight into the early work of one of the Fathers of Egyptology. These are his own reflections and opinions regarding the monuments of Egypt. It is important to remember that Champollion only ever made one trip to Egypt as he died soon after his return. A great loss to the science of Egyptology.

-- Jean-Francois Champollion, a 10 year old child saw some of the Egyptian artifacts and enquired about the strange pictures (Hieroglyphs) where he was told that no one yet understands what these pictures means. Since that time Champollion committed himself to decipher the Hieroglyphs. By the age of 16 he became a professor mastering 10 languages at the same time. Champollion then compares the two cartouches of PTOLEMY & CLEOPATRA found on the Rosetta stone which contains similar characters. He continued deciphering more cartouches and texts from the temple of El Karnak. It took Champollion 24 years until he published his work in a book " Precis du systeme Hieroglyphique ". Sadly Champollion died by a stroke in 1832 when he was 41 years old.

--  Very rare L'expédition d'Égypte, 1798-1801, par Clément de Lajonquière. Five large volumes in wraps, total of about 3400 pages! (1902, 2nd edition). Among the campaigns of the revolution, consigning Egypt is both one of the most popular and less well known. Thus began the monumental work of Clement Draveurs (Clément de La Jonquière). Published (about 100 years after the Napoleonic military campaign) from 1899 to 1907 under the auspices of the History Section of the État de l'Armée, Paris, he tells one of the most extraordinary adventures of the revolutionary period. Many testimonies, more or less reliable contemporaries; also numerous texts on the science of "oriental dream." The work of Georges Rigault on the last leg of the expedition to Egypt and those of Pierre de La Grèverie on Regiment Dromadaires round off the work of a master in the final volume.

Vol. I: 673 p., Vol. II: 632 p., Vol. III: 720 p., Vol. IV: 688 p., Vol. V: 692 p. A complete set. With numerous foldout maps. Vol. I: A rebinding copy. Rear cover missing, backstrip missing parts and frayed. Shaken. Internally excellent: text leaves clean and neat. Vol. II: Missing front wrap cover, else in excellent condition – tight and clean. Vol. III: a Very Good volume. Tight and clean with some wear to covers. Vol. IV: A rebinding volume – shaken, backstrip cracked. Covers off and frayed. Internally clean and neat. Vol. V: A Very Good volume. Tight and clean. Covers with some wear and leaves somewhat yellowed. A remarkable complete set.

BACKGROUND: (translated from French) In 1797, after the victory early, and unexpected, Napoleon in Italy, England remains the main enemy. One can oppose it either by attempting an invasion, either by intervening on its links with India. The conquest by Bonaparte of Ionian Islands in August 1797 opened the way to the Orient and reanimate the idea of conquest of Egypt, which would allow the opening of the Isthmus of Suez, thus controlling of a more commercial path runs to the riches of India. As a first step, in January and February 1798, the policy of the Executive moves to the invasion. Bonaparte examines all possibilities of invasion from ports in the north, the troops are assembled, a fleet is formed, but the operation seems far too risky and it is abandoned. But we must fight against England, and incidentally get rid of a Bonaparte too. Talleyrand, confirmed his analysis by the intervention of Magallon, will therefore attempt Eastern map. The decision to intervene in Egypt was taken on March 5, 1798. On August 22, 1799, Bonaparte, after the unfortunate expedition to Syria, even Egypt, called for new targeted France.He left the expedition under the command of Kleber, which does little to maintain in Egypt. But Kleber is totally convinced of the importance of scientific work, which continues, despite the setbacks and delays of the policy. Similarly, on November 19, 1799 a commission to study more particularly modern Egypt. On Nov. 22, 1799, he took the decision to consolidate all the work of scholars of the commission in a unique work, the Description of Egypt. Kleber enters into negotiations with the British and the Ottomans, to evacuate honorably and Egypt to participate in military actions in Europe. An agreement was concluded on January 23, 1800 for the return in France, but its implementation is not possible, given the internal divisions among English, the sultan of procrastination and the resumption of hostilities in Egypt. After the victory of Heliopolis Kléber on the Ottomans, March 20, 1800, there is no question of return, but the morale of the troops, such as scholars rose. Unfortunately, on June 14, 1800, when the victory of Marengo, Kléber was assassinated in Cairo. The General Menou, being the oldest in the highest rank succeeded him as head of the army. Any momentum had been able to restore Kléber members of the expedition despite the failure of the draft back, disappears with him. Until the final departure to France, scholars no longer leave little near the Cairo and Alexandria in order to be ready to leave at the first opportunity. However Menou continues the work of reorganization and modernization begun by Bonaparte and continued by Kleber. To him we owe the fact that the publication of the description will not be provided by private funds but rather by the state, so that is recognized and sanctioned the importance of the work done by scholars. After many tribulations, scholars, gathered in Alexandria, obtain permission to leave Egypt on May 13, 1801, but the English do not want to pass up, unless they abandon all material collected during the exploration and their notes and sketches. The negotiations, sometimes tragic, lasting several months and it was not until September that the first members of the committee may leave Egyptian soil, having left in the hands of English the heaviest items that they had found, including the famous Rosetta Stone.

-- Vintage framed image of Dr. Thomas Young.

-- 1821 RARE AUTOGRAPH LETTER [Thomas Young to William Phillips]. A rare hand-written letter from scientist Dr. Thomas Young, the founder of physiological optics and author of the wave theory of light. He is also credited for helping to solve the puzzle to comprehending  ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. The letter, written in the third person (and in his hand), betrays a distinct animosity towards Young's new publisher, William Phillips. Concerning the second edition of his Introduction to Medical Literature (eventually published in 1823), Young is not pleased that his suggestion of a fee “forming exactly two arithmetical means between these extremes” has not been accepted by Phillips. [2 written sides on black-bordered notepaper, originally folded in thirds. Closed tear to margin passing through several words, no loss of text or paper].

Dr. Young begs leave to observe, in reply to Mr. Phillips's note, in which he says that “the sum proposed by Dr. Young is greater than the work will bear”, that he did not propose any sum whatever - that he told both Dr. Paris and Mr. Phillips that he would make no proposal whatever, but that he was ready to receive any proposals that might be made to him.

Mr.Phillips mentioned two sums as the probable extreme limits of what the work might appear to be worth, and Dr. Young mentioned two other sums forming exactly two arithmetical means between these extremes, which was certainly rather according to Mr. Phillips's preliminaries than making any new proposals of his own.

Dr. Young is therefore at a loss to understand why Mr. Phillips should be most averse at present to making an offer of any kind that he was when he thought it worth while to offer a negociation (sic), which as it appears to Dr. Young, he has broken off without any sufficient reason, though he was certainly at full liberty to do so, in a legal point of view.

Mr. Phillips must be as good a judge of the sale of books as Dr. Young but it does not appear by any means to Dr. Y. that the sale of a second edition would be slower than that of the first: the contrary being extremely likely to happen to any work of established reputation, and especially to a work which is intended to form the basis of the library of every student in every department of the medical profession – though certainly the second edition of this work would not be likely to be purchased by many persons who are in possession of the first.

Welbeck Street 15 Dec. 1821

Note: The third person was a formal literary device not uncommon before the 20th century; in this case, we imagine Thomas Young used it because his publisher (William Phillips) was not exactly a close friend...

-- An extremely rare copy of the second edition of Thomas Young's Introduction to Medical Literature, Including a System of Practical Nosology. Intended as a Guide to Students, and an Assistant to Practitioners. Published first in 1813 and now an expanded and corrected 1823 edition by W. Phillips, London). Thomas Young, M.D. F.R. & L.S., was a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and the Physician to St. George's Hospital. The letter above is connected with this edition, stating that Dr. Young is not at all pleased with William Phillips.

BACKGROUND: Dr. Thomas Young is the man who undertook the task had perhaps the keenest scientific imagination and the most versatile profundity of knowledge of his generation — one is tempted to say, of any generation. Thomas Young (1773-1829) has been given credit for an enormous number of scientific discoveries: in 1800, long before Fresnel, he suggested and gave evidence for the wave theory of light, against the Newtonian dogma of a particulate system. Again challenging Newton, he proved in 1801 that the visible spectrum was continuous and that the eye could depend on just three color receptors. He was elected to the Royal Society at the age of 21 and subsequently became its foreign secretary under Joseph Banks. “Young has sometimes been hailed as a child prodigy who, by the age of sixteen, had not only mastered Latin and Greek but also possessed a good working knowledge of several other languages and gained a firm background in the sciences. He clearly possessed considerable mental abilities, while his Quaker upbringing encouraged the habit of hard work and proscribed frivolous activities. So effective was his training that later in life he claimed never to have wasted a single day...On several occasions he traveled on the continent, where he met such leading savants as Laplace, Arago, and Humboldt. In 1827 he was honored by being elected one of the eight foreign members of the Paris Académie des Sciences.” His achievements are recognized on a plaque erected at Westminster Abbey close to the spot where Newton was buried.

Young had his attention called to the Rosetta Stone by accident, and his usual rapacity for knowledge at once led him to speculate as to the possible aid this tri-lingual inscription might give in the solution of Egyptian problems. Resolving at once to attempt the solution himself, he set to work to learn Coptic, which was rightly  believed to represent the nearest existing approach to the ancient Egyptian language. His amazing facility in the acquisition of languages stood him in such good stead that within a year of his first efforts he had mastered Coptic and assured himself that the ancient Egyptian language was really similar to it, and had even made a tentative attempt at the translation of the Egyptian scroll. His results were only tentative, to be sure. Yet they constituted the very beginnings of our knowledge regarding the meaning of hieroglyphics. Just how far they carried has been a subject of ardent controversy ever since.  Not that there is any doubt about the specific facts; what is questioned is the exact importance of these facts. For it is undeniable that Young did not complete and perfect the discovery, and, as always in such matters, there is opportunity for difference of opinion as to the share of credit due to each of the workers who entered into the discovery. In fierce competition with Jean François Champollion (during the Napoleonic Wars), he is jointly credited as the first decipherer of the Rosetta Stone hieroglyphs, with the recognition that certain symbols represented the sounds of a royal title.

-- A ten inch plate made in Stockton-on-Tees by William Smith & Co. between 1825 and 1855 commemorating Napoleon Bonaparte’s campaign in Egypt that lasted from 1798 to 1801. The plate is transfer printed with what seems to be hand coloring under the glaze. It has no damage or crazing but there is minute bubbling of the transfer and glaze at the edges, which then goes over to the back of the plate much of the way around to varying degrees. The impressed mark reads 44 W. S. & Co. Wedgewood (Yorkshire) and this could indicate that the plate was made in 1844.

-- Magnificent extremely rare plate/print (one of 511 plates), expertly backed with linen, of Thutmose III from the monumental 1843 work of Jean Champollion, the first to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphs (20" x 27").

-- Rare First Edition copy of "L'Univers Pittoresque. Egypte Ancienne" by M. Champollion-Figeac (Jean Champollion), Paris, Firmin Didot, 1839. It contains 92 illustrations and an antique folding map of Egypt. First few pages have some foxing, with the rest in excellent condition. 500 pp., & 92 plates,1/2 maroon morocco with 5 raised bands & leather label, marbled bds. & endpapers.

-- Very scarce First Edition, Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum, 1862. Details 250 exhibits. Published by Smith, 196 pages. Excellent condition. In fact, it appears to be unread. Over 6 pages, with three diagrams, dedicated to the Rosetta Stone.

--  The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte by J.G. Lockhart (1886), 496 pages with 9 tipped-in illustrations and many wood engravings. London: Bickers & Sons, Leicester Square. Faversham School Prize full calf binding with marbled endpapers and edges. Prize bookplate on pastedown. Portrait frontispiece slight foxing. Text, slight foxing. Slight foxing in prelims and last few pages, otherwise clean. Plates, lovely and luminous.

--  Hand written letter (Nov. 5th, 1805) by the former Chief Ordonnateur (Director) of the French Army during the Napoleonic Egyptian Campaign.

--  "Egyptian Antiquities", produced by the British Museum for the Library of Entertaining Knowledge, and published by Knight London in 1832, this is a splendid two-volume, 12mo size work. The two volumes have full page and other engravings and have around 800 pages in total. Really detailed work on Egyptian monuments, Rosetta Stone, buildings, sculptures, tombs, papyrus, etc., etc. In the original half calf boards.

-- Rare Original French Text Book, copyright 1900 -- "L'Expedition de Bonaparte en Egypte", written by L.A. Thiers, with introduction by C. Fabregou, published by D.C. Heath & Company. Most of the book is written in French, with some English translation in the back. 100 pages. It is an old college text book from Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA.

--  L’Egypte, by old French traveler/diplomat/student of Egypt, Gabriel Charmes, published by CALMAN LEVY, Rue Auber, Paris, France, 1891, Chapters include, in part -- Mariette Pacha, Les Etudes Egyptologiques en Egypte, Les Pyramides D’Ounas et de Meydoum, Dier-El-Bahari, L’Institut D’Archeologie Orientale Du Caire, and more. Very antique volume of 396 rich crispy style pages in its original Calmann Levy, ‘L’EGYPTE’ soft card covers as published.

-- A beautiful hand written letter dictated by Dominique-Vivant DENON (1747-1825). Denon was the eyes and ears of Napoleon during the Egyptian Military campaign. When he came back to France, he was the Director of the Museums under Napoleon, founder of the Museum of Louvre, and director of the medal mint. (unsigned) Sunday morning 1808, to a lady: “I gave orders relating to the frames of your paperboards. One seeks in the stores if wood still exist there. I fear well that they are employed with some other thing. I ask for forgiveness to you of employing a foreign hand to answer you; but I am obliged to dictate while I get dressed to return to the Palais..." Measures 5 x 7.75 and is not fully translated.

-- Rare 1843 issue of The New World published by J. Winchester; New York. The 68-page April issue contains the first appearance of a pioneering work, "Ancient Egypt, A Series of Chapters on Early Egyptian History, Archaeology, and Other Subjects Connected with Hieroglyphical Literature" by George R. Gliddon.  According to the preface "the first chapters on Hierology that have ever issued from an American press", prepared from a series of lectures delivered the previous year, and not published in book form until 1850. George Gliddon (1809-1857) was British-born, and served as U. S. Consul at Cairo.  An archaeologist, Gliddon went to Alexandria as a young man and spent 23 years in Egypt. He lectured on Egyptian antiquities in the United States and wrote, among other works, "A Memoir on the Cotton of Egypt" [1841[ "An Appeal to the Antiquaries of Europe on the Destruction of the Monuments of Egypt" [1841], and "Ancient Egypt" [1850].  This is an important work, profusely illustrated with hieroglyphic examples, and very scarce in this "New World" format. 11" x 7.5". Newsprint.

-- A number of original editions of "The Rosetta Stone" -- Printed by order of the Trustees of the British Museum: 1913 (First Edition), 1922 (four copies), 1927, 1939 (two copies), 1950, 1951, 1955, 1971, 1974...by Wallis Budge.

-- GREPPO, J. G. H. Essay on the hieroglyphic system of M. Champollion, Jun., and on the advantages which it offers to sacred criticism. By J. G. H. Greppo, Vicar General of Belley. Translated from the French by Isaac Stuart, with notes and illustrations.  Boston, MA: Perkins & Marvin, 1830. Later cloth Cover. Translated from the Paris edition of 1829; this was the only English edition. This book was published a mere seven years after the code to hieroglyphics had been cracked.

And much, much more...