GEBEL SILSILEH ▲ Christa Zaat

Christa Zaat



Ernest Koerner (German painter) 1846 - 1927
Gebel Silsileh Temple, Egypt, 1919
oil on canvas
85 x 127 cm. (33.5 x 50 in.)
signed and dated 'Ernst Koerner/.1919.' (lower right)
private collection
© photo Christie's

Catalogue Note Christie's
Trained in Berlin, Ernst Koerner travelled widely throughout northern Europe before making a trip to Egypt in 1873 that would determine the course of the rest of his career. Captivated by the landscapes of the Eastern Mediterranean, Koerner became famous for his beautifully detailed depictions of architecturally important sites, particularly in Turkey and Egypt. Gebel Silsileh is 65 km north of Aswan in Upper Egypt, where the cliffs on both sides close to the narrowest point along the length of the entire Nile. In the present lot, the reddish shades of the sandstone indicate the wealth this area is famous for – during the 18th dynasty Egyptians switched from limestone to sandstone, and Gebel Silsileh was a great source of this brick. Almost all of Egypt’s great temples derived their sandstone from this mine, and in turn many shrines were erected here on the banks of the Nile by officials in charge of mining the stone.