Max van Berchem

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Max van Berchem (born March 16, 1863 as Maximilian van Berchem in Geneva , † March 7, 1921 in Vaumarcus ) was a Swiss orientalist , specialist in Islamic archeology and photographer .

Life

Max van Berchem came from an old Flemish aristocratic family who immigrated to Switzerland in 1765. at the age of nine he lost his father after a long illness. He spent his school days in Geneva and two years in Stuttgart (1877–1879). After a university semester in Geneva, he felt the desire to study the ancient Orient. He went to the University of Leipzig to there Assyriologie to study, but this brought him no satisfaction. Thus he began studying Arabic language and literature. In the summer of 1883 he studied at the University of Strasbourg and then four semesters at the University of Berlin . He received his doctorate with La propriété territoriale et l'impôt foncier sous les premiers califes in March 1886 in Leipzig.

Château de Crans

He had his first stay in Egypt in 1887, which also set him the goal in life, to which he always adhered: the creation of a Corpus inscriptionum arabicarum (a comprehensive collection of Arabic scripts). From February to June 1888 he made a major trip through Egypt, Palestine and Syria . He then worked in Paris with Clermont-Ganneau and Barbier de Meynard until 1889 . In the years 1892–1895 he traveled to Syria, Palestine and Egypt.

Between his travels he researched libraries and museums in Europe and took part in congresses, where he built and maintained strong international relationships. He lived for a long time in Crans Castle near Céligny . In 1891 and 1892 the Notes d'archéologie arabe appeared , which among other things form the basis of Islamic archeology. From 1895 to 1914 he traveled less and concentrated mainly on the research and publication of various papers. The publication of the Egyptian volumes of the Corpus inscriptionum arabicarum lasted from 1894 to 1903. With the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, a large part of his international efforts were destroyed. He tried in vain to restore relations in the years that followed.

The Universities of Geneva and Lausanne awarded him an honorary doctorate . In 1913 he was appointed a foreign member by the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres , the highest honor they could bestow on a non-French. During his last trip to Cairo in 1921, his health, which had already been weakened by overwork, deteriorated and he returned to Switzerland. A few weeks after his return and shortly before his 58th birthday, he died of pneumonia .

Works (selection)

  • La propriété territoriale et l'impôt foncier sous les premiers califes. H. Georg, Geneva 1886.
  • Matériaux pour un Corpus inscriptionum arabicum. Première partie, Egypt. Ernest Leroux, Paris 1894–1903.
  • Matériaux pour un Corpus inscriptionum arabicum. Deuxième partie, Syrie du Nord. Le Caier, 1909-1949.
  • Matériaux pour un Corpus inscriptionum arabicum. Troisième partie, Asie mineure. Le Caier, 1910-1917.

literature

  • Max van Berchem, 1863–1921: Hommages rendus à sa mémoire. Imprimerie Albert Kundig, Geneva 1923.
  • Favre, Edouard: Max van Berchem (1863-1921). A. Jullien, Geneva 1922.

Magazine articles

  • Gaston Wiet: Max van Berchem's Library. In: The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland , No. 2 (April, 1926), pp. 308-310.
  • Gaston Wiet: Max van Berchem (1863-1921): Créateur de l'épigraphie Arabe. In: Swiss History Journal , No. 3 (1963), pp. 379-388.
  • Ernst Herzfeld: Max van Berchem. In: Der Islam , XII (1922), pp. 206-213.
  • KAC Creswell : In memoriam - Max van Berchem. In: Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society , 1963, pp. 117-118.

Web links

Commons : Max van Berchem picture collection  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ernst Herzfeld: Max van Berchem. In: Der Islam , XII (1922), pp. 206-213.
  2. ↑ Hélène Naville: Un portrait. In: Max van Berchem, 1863–1921: Hommages rendus à sa mémoire. Imprimerie Albert Kundig, Geneva 1923, pp. 143–153.
  3. ^ Max van Berchem, 1863–1921: Hommages rendus à sa mémoire. Imprimerie Albert Kundig, Geneva 1923 pp. 64–68.
personal data
SURNAME Berchem, Max van
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Berchem, Maximilian van
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss orientalist, specialist in Islamic archeology
DATE OF BIRTH March 16, 1863
PLACE OF BIRTH Geneva
DATE OF DEATH March 7, 1921
Place of death Vaumarcus