Sarah Belzoni

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Sarah Belzoni (* probably as Sarah Banne or Sarah Bane 1783 ; † January 12, 1870 in Jersey ) was a British artist , traveler to the Orient and adventurer.

Where Sarah Belzoni was born is not known; she was either of English or Irish descent. The maiden name Banne is also not certain. In 1803 she met her future husband Giovanni Battista Belzoni , an Italian artist who was touring England at the time. After their marriage in the same year, the couple went on tour to the continent, including Spain and Portugal . Sarah Belzoni supported her gigantic husband in his performances.

During a stay in Malta , Giovanni Belzoni came into contact with the envoy of the Egyptian pasha , on whose advice they went to Egypt , where Giovanni tried to be an engineer without much success . On behalf of and with the support of the British consul Henry Salt , Giovanni Belzoni began to excavate ancient Egyptian burial sites in order to bring the finds to Europe. Sarah Belzoni mostly stayed in their respective apartments, sometimes she accompanied her husband disguised as a Mameluke boy, for example to Cairo , Luxor or Aswan . It is unclear whether and how much she played a part in her husband's work; he only rarely mentions his wife in his writings. The only writing that had a lasting impact was the chapter Women in Egypt, Nubia and Syria in one of her husband's books. Although she only had a small Arabic vocabulary , she was able to get into contact with Egyptian women and was interested in their private lives, culture and stories. Also preserved are Sarah Belzoni's own notes, which mostly dealt with everyday life in Egypt, but sometimes also dealt with her longing to take part in her husband's work herself. During her husband's trip to Libya , she stayed at the home of an English merchant in Rosetta and passed the time catching and researching lizards . She also reported this in her notes.

In January 1818, Sarah Belzoni traveled alone to the " Holy Land ". At first she stayed in Damietta for two months . In March she came to Jaffa , then to Jerusalem , where she attended Holy Week and climbed the Temple Mount . It was only possible because she disguised herself as a man; Women were banned from participating in Holy Week at that time. It is said that she was the first modern woman to take part, although she could only see the top of the cliff on the Temple Mount. With a guide and riding a donkey, she toured the Jordan Valley , Jericho Valley , Mount Zion and Bethlehem in May . After her husband did not obey as promised, she returned to Egypt.

In 1820 the Belzoni couple returned to England. Giovanni Belzoni had great success as a showman with his Egyptian finds. He died three years later on an expedition in Gwato in Benin . Sarah outlived her husband by 47 years. Her attempt to continue to profit from her husband's experiences and Egyptological legacies failed. In 1825 she opened an exhibition, after the failure of which she was left penniless. Friends petitioned the British Parliament to grant her a pension based on her husband's accomplishments. It was not until 1851 that this was granted in the amount of 100 pounds. Sarah Belzoni lived for a time in Brussels and on the Channel Islands . She died on the island of Jersey at the age of 87 .

Charles Dickens , a friend of the couple, described Sarah Belzoni as a beautiful, graceful young woman . Tanja Kinkel made Belzoni the focus of her novel Pillars of Eternity , published in 2008 .

literature

Web links

supporting documents

  1. ↑ Description of the novel and reviews at histo-couch.de
personal data
SURNAME Belzoni, Sarah
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Bane, Sarah; Banne, Sarah
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British artist, traveler to the Orient and adventurer
DATE OF BIRTH 1783
DATE OF DEATH January 12, 1870
Place of death jersey