Hippolyte Arnoux Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Hippolyte Arnoux
A rare image by Hippolyte Arnoux courtesy of the Saulso Collection
Born	unknown France
Died	unknown
Nationality	French
Known for	Orientalist photographer and painter
Notable work	Album du Canal de Suez (A documentation of the excavation of the Suez Canal)

Hippolyte Arnoux was a French photographer and publisher who was active from about 1860 to 1890. He was one of the first photographers to capture images of Egypt. He is especially known for documenting the huge project of building the Suez Canal through many photographs and a special book.

Life as a Photographer

We don't know much about Hippolyte Arnoux's early life. His exact birth and death dates and places are unknown. We do know he was French and worked in the Nile Valley region of Egypt from around 1869 to at least 1890.

In the 1850s, more and more tourists started visiting Egypt. They wanted to buy photographs as souvenirs to remember their trips. This created a big demand for photographers. A small group of early photographers, mostly from France, traveled to Cairo and the Nile Valley to meet this demand. These pioneering photographers included Félix Bonfils, Gustave Le Gray, Henri and Emile Bechard, the British-Italian brothers Antonio Beato and Felice Beato, and the Greek Zangaki brothers.

It's not clear exactly when Arnoux first arrived in Egypt. However, he seems to have been there around the same time as these other famous photographers. There is some evidence that Arnoux might have worked with the Zangaki Brothers, but we don't know exactly how they cooperated.

Arnoux opened his own photography studio in Port Said in the 1860s. He later opened another studio in the same city. He also had a special floating darkroom in Port Said during the 1860s and 70s. A photograph of this unique floating darkroom still exists today!

Arnoux might have been the official photographer for the Universal Company of the Suez Canal. This company was in charge of building the canal. If he was, his job would have been to take pictures of the construction work. He might have even hired the Zangaki Brothers to help him with this big task. Later, Arnoux also worked with the British-Italian photographer, Antonio Beato.

In 1874, Arnoux had a legal disagreement with the Zangaki Brothers and another person named Spiridion Antippa. He claimed they were using his artistic work without his permission. The court agreed with Arnoux. On June 29, 1876, the Court of Ismailia ruled in his favor, recognizing that he owned the rights to his photographs.

Arnoux's Works

During the 1860s, Hippolyte Arnoux took many pictures of the huge project to dig the Suez Canal. He later published these photographs in a book called Album du Canal de Suez. He also took many portraits of Egyptian people, likely in his studio.

Selected images of Egyptian People