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Égypte Moyenne, Le Sphinx

Maxime Du Camp's salted paper print of the Great Sphinx of Giza buried in sand up to its chest, a pyramid behind it, on a mount inscribed Le Sphinx, Égypte Moyenne
Artwork FileGiza, Egypt

Égypte Moyenne, Le Sphinx

Seen2015

Maxime Du Camp · 1849 · Giza

Photo: Maxime Du Camp / George Eastman Museum (Public Domain Mark 1.0), ca. 1849–1850. Resized from the existing SAU image.

Maxime Du Camp photographed the Great Sphinx at Giza in December 1849, on his journey through Egypt with the writer Gustave Flaubert. Salted paper prints of the picture are held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the George Eastman Museum in Rochester and the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum. Source Source Source Checked

Seen 2015 — evidence dated 2015. This file is about the photograph, not the Sphinx itself. The newest dated record is the Metropolitan Museum’s 2015 gift of its print from Joyce F. Menschel; the museums’ online catalogues list their prints but do not date an inspection. Source Checked

💡 4 things to know

  1. Made on the trip with FlaubertThe George Eastman Museum says Du Camp took his Egypt photographs on his 1849–50 trip with the French writer Gustave Flaubert. Source Checked
  2. Negative 1849, print 1852The Met dates the paper negative to December 1849 and its print to 1852. Source Checked
  3. Buried to the chestIn the Eastman print only the Sphinx’s head and upper body rise above the sand, with a pyramid behind. Source Checked
  4. Three museum printsThe Met, the George Eastman Museum and the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum each list a salted paper print of Le Sphinx. Source Source Source Checked

📍 Where it is

Photographed at the Great Sphinx, Giza Plateau, Giza, Egypt. Prints: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (2015.778.35); George Eastman Museum, Rochester (Johnston Album); Tokyo Photographic Art Museum (20106461). Source Source Source Checked

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🗓️ Sightings

  1. 1849Dec

    Du Camp makes the paper negative

  2. 1852

    The Met’s print is made from the negative

  3. 2015

    The Met receives its print as a gift of Joyce F. Menschel

Green stamps mark dated photographs; amber stamps mark records or reports; red stamps mark loss. Publication dates are not camera dates.

🗞️ In the sources

George Eastman MuseumCollection record (undated)

Le Sphinx, Egypt Moyenne

“From the expeditionary photographs of Egypt taken by Maxime Du Camp on his trip with the French writer Gustave Flaubert in 1849-50, there are six prints.”

Read the source →

✅ The facts

Photographer
Maxime Du Camp (1822–1894) Source Source Checked
Title (Met)
Égypte Moyenne, Le Sphinx Source Checked
Mount inscription
“Maxime Du Camp Le Sphinx, Egypte Moyenne”, in ink (Eastman print) Source Checked
Date (Met)
Negative December 1849, printed 1852 Source Checked
Date (other catalogues)
ca. 1849–1850 (Eastman); 1849–1851 (Tokyo) Source Source Checked
Process
Salted paper print from a paper negative Source Source Source Checked
Met print
15.7 × 20.8 cm, 2015.778.35, gift of Joyce F. Menschel, 2015 Source Checked
Eastman print
21 × 15.5 cm (w × h), Johnston Album, gift of G. C. Monkhouse Source Checked
Tokyo print
150 × 216 mm, accession number 20106461 Source Checked
Johnston Album
Believed bound shortly after 1859, with six Du Camp prints Source Reported
Travel companion
Gustave Flaubert Source Source Checked

🔗 Related

All sources & image credits

Last checked: 29 October 2026. How we verify art