Early travellers

This is a collection of accounts by foreign visitors to Egypt, from antiquity to the modern era. It is a useful starting point for anyone interested in the history of travel and foreign accounts of Egypt. The level of detail in their accounts varies greatly, ranging from brief observations to extensive descriptions of Egypt, its people, monuments and landscape. The travellers include scholars, historians, pilgrims, adventurers, diplomats and naturalists. The surviving sources are equally diverse and include books, travel accounts, letters, diaries and reports.

Hecataeus of Miletus (late 6th century BC)

Hecataeus of Miletus was a Greek historian and geographer who travelled in Egypt and described parts of the country in his geographical work. His writings are lost, but fragments preserved by later authors provide evidence of his observations of Egypt.

Herodotus (c. 450 BC)

Herodotus was a Greek historian who travelled through Egypt, probably as far south as Elephantine. The second book of his Histories provides an extensive account of Egyptian geography, customs, religion, history, monuments, and society.

Eudoxus of Cnidus (4th century BC)

Eudoxus of Cnidus was a Greek mathematician, astronomer, and geographer who spent time in Egypt and studied with Egyptian priests. His writings on geography and astronomy are lost, although later authors preserve some information about his work.

Hecataeus of Abdera (early 3rd century BC)

Hecataeus of Abdera was a Greek historian who visited Egypt during the reign of Ptolemy I. His Aigyptiaka described Egyptian history, religion, customs, geography, and the country's monuments. The original work is lost, but substantial material survives through later writers, particularly Diodorus Siculus.

Eudoxus of Cyzicus (3rd century BC)

Eudoxus of Cyzicus was a Greek navigator and explorer associated with voyages between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. He visited Egypt and became involved in Ptolemaic attempts to explore routes toward the Indian Ocean. His own account has not survived.

Polybius (2nd century BC)

Polybius was a Greek historian who travelled in Egypt and visited Alexandria. His Histories contain observations on the political and geographical situation of Ptolemaic Egypt, although much of the relevant material survives only in fragments.

Artemidorus of Ephesus (c. 100 BC)

Artemidorus of Ephesus was a Greek geographer who travelled widely and visited Egypt. His extensive geographical work is lost, but fragments and quotations preserved by later authors provide evidence for his observations.

Diodorus Siculus (c. 60 BC)

Diodorus Siculus was a Greek historian from Sicily who travelled in Egypt around the middle of the first century BC. Book I of his Bibliotheca Historica contains one of the most extensive surviving descriptions of ancient Egypt, including its geography, customs, religion, history, and monuments.

Julius Caesar (48–47 BC)

Julius Caesar travelled to Alexandria during the Alexandrian War and became involved in the conflict between Cleopatra VII and Ptolemy XIII. His account in Bellum Civile describes events in Alexandria and the military campaign in Egypt.

Strabo (c. 25–20 BC)

Strabo was a Greek geographer who travelled through Egypt from Alexandria southward to the region of Syene and Philae. Book XVII of his Geographika provides a detailed description of Egyptian geography, cities, temples, monuments, customs, and administration.

Pliny the Elder (1st century AD)

Pliny the Elder was a Roman naturalist, philosopher, and writer. His Naturalis Historia contains extensive information about Egypt, including its geography, natural resources, animals, plants, monuments, pyramids, and religious traditions.

Claudius Ptolemy (2nd century AD)

Claudius Ptolemy was a Greek mathematician, astronomer, and geographer who lived and worked in Alexandria. His Geographia contains geographical coordinates and descriptions of numerous places in Egypt. He was a resident scholar rather than a documented travelling visitor, but his work is an important surviving geographical record of Roman Egypt.

Aelius Aristides (c. 141–142 AD)

Aelius Aristides was a Greek rhetorician who travelled in Egypt and visited Alexandria and other parts of the country. His Egyptian Oration contains observations about Egypt, the Nile, Alexandria, and Egyptian religious traditions.

Nearchus (1st century AD)

Nearchus is associated with a surviving Greek papyrus letter containing observations connected with Egypt. The identification and dating of the author are uncertain.

Pausanias (2nd century AD)

Pausanias was a Greek traveller and writer whose Description of Greece contains scattered references to Egypt, Egyptian religion, and Egyptian monuments. The extent of his own travel in Egypt is uncertain, and some of his information may derive from earlier sources.

Ammianus Marcellinus (4th century AD)

Ammianus Marcellinus was a Roman historian who travelled through Egypt during the fourth century. His Res Gestae contains observations about Egypt, the Nile, Alexandria, and several ancient monuments.

Rufinus of Aquileia (c. 375)

Rufinus of Aquileia travelled in Egypt and spent time among Christian monks in the Egyptian desert. His writings preserve descriptions of Egyptian monasteries, monks, and religious communities.

Egeria (381–384 AD)

Egeria was a Christian pilgrim who travelled through Egypt during the late fourth century. Her surviving travel account describes Alexandria, the Nile Valley, Sinai, and numerous Christian and monastic sites.

Anonymous visitor (c. 394–395)

An anonymous Christian traveller visited Egyptian monastic communities around the end of the fourth century. The resulting Historia Monachorum in Aegypto describes monks, monasteries, ascetics, and religious communities throughout Egypt.

John Cassian (c. 400)

John Cassian travelled through Egypt and spent years visiting Christian monastic communities. His Institutes and Conferences record teachings and observations attributed to Egyptian monks and provide valuable evidence for late antique Egyptian monasticism.

al-Masʿudi (10th century)

Al-Masʿudi was an Arab historian and geographer who travelled extensively through the Islamic world, including Egypt. His Murūj al-Dhahab contains observations on Egyptian history, geography, monuments, and traditions.

Ibn Hawqal (10th century)

Ibn Hawqal was a tenth-century Arab geographer and traveller. He visited Egypt and described its cities, agriculture, economy, waterways, and geography in his Ṣūrat al-Arḍ.

al-Muqaddasi (c. 985)

Al-Muqaddasi was a Palestinian geographer who travelled extensively through the Islamic world. His visit to Egypt is reflected in his description of Cairo, Fustat, the Nile, and the administrative and economic organization of the country.

Nāṣir-i Khusraw (1047–1050)

Nāṣir-i Khusraw was a Persian poet, philosopher, and traveller who visited Egypt during the Fatimid period. His Safarnāma provides detailed observations of Cairo, Fustat, Alexandria, the Nile, and Fatimid Egypt.

Benjamin of Tudela (c. 1165–1173)

Benjamin of Tudela was a Jewish traveller from Navarre who visited Egypt during the twelfth century. His itinerary describes Alexandria, Cairo, Fustat, the Jewish communities of Egypt, and the political situation of the country.

Ibn Jubayr (1183–1184)

Ibn Jubayr was an Andalusian traveller who visited Egypt during his pilgrimage to Mecca. His Riḥla contains detailed observations of Alexandria, Cairo, Fustat, the Nile, and the administration of Egypt under Saladin.

ʿAbd al-Laṭīf al-Baghdādī (c. 1200)

ʿAbd al-Laṭīf al-Baghdādī was a physician and scholar from Baghdad who lived in Egypt for several years. His detailed account describes Cairo, the Nile, the pyramids, ancient monuments, agriculture, famine, and the people of Egypt.

Ibn Baṭṭūṭa (1326 and later visits)

Ibn Baṭṭūṭa visited Egypt several times during his extensive travels. His Riḥla describes Alexandria, Cairo, the Nile Valley, religious institutions, monuments, and the political and social life of medieval Egypt.

Ibn Khaldūn (1382–1406)

Ibn Khaldūn arrived in Egypt in 1382 and spent the remainder of his life there, apart from several journeys. His writings contain observations on Egyptian society, government, geography, and history.

Meshullam ben Menahem (1481)

Meshullam ben Menahem was a Jewish traveller who visited Egypt in the late fifteenth century. His account provides observations of Egyptian cities and Jewish communities.

Felix Fabri (1483–1484)

Felix Fabri was a German Dominican friar who travelled to Egypt as part of a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. His Evagatorium contains descriptions of Alexandria, Cairo, the Nile, and the Egyptian landscape and monuments.

Arnold von Harff (1496–1499)

Arnold von Harff was a German knight who travelled through the eastern Mediterranean and Egypt. His account describes Alexandria, Cairo, the pyramids, the Nile, and other places he encountered.

Pierre Belon (1540s)

Pierre Belon was a French naturalist who travelled through the eastern Mediterranean, including Egypt. His Observations contain descriptions of Egyptian plants, animals, geography, customs, and monuments.

Prospero Alpini (16th century)

Prospero Alpini was an Italian physician and botanist who travelled to Egypt and lived there for several years. His observations of Egyptian medicine, plants, agriculture, and customs were later published in his works on Egypt.

Jean Palerne (1581–1583)

Jean Palerne was a French traveller who visited Egypt during his journey through the eastern Mediterranean. His Pérégrinations contains descriptions of Alexandria, Cairo, the pyramids, and other Egyptian sites.

Anonymous Venetian (1589)

An anonymous Venetian traveller visited Egypt in 1589 and recorded observations of Cairo, Luxor, and other places. His account includes an early European description of the monuments at ancient Thebes, including the two great colossi.

14. The Colossi of Thebes. In the countryside, opposite Ochsur [Luxor], I saw a large expanse of land filled with ancient buildings; among those which seduced my eyes two large colossi of mixed stone; I was not able to admire them up close, because the countryside is completely submerged under water. This is why I only saw them from the bank of the Nile, which was a hundred paces or more away.

Apart from these two statues, there were quite a few monuments. Some Moors told me that it was another Ochsur, built opposite the other and built by a brother of the one who had built the first, to compete with it. But it seems to me that he must have been inferior in every respect. For among the things that I am going to describe to you, I have not seen a building that was of such great price, made of such a large quantity of stones, and of such a large size. The better to prove it to you, I'll start on the next page...

George Sandys (1610–1611)

George Sandys was an English traveller and writer who visited Egypt during his journey through the eastern Mediterranean. His account describes Alexandria, Cairo, the pyramids, the Nile, and Egyptian antiquities.

Jean-Baptiste Tavernier (1630s–1640s)

Jean-Baptiste Tavernier was a French merchant and traveller who made several journeys through the Ottoman Empire and the eastern Mediterranean. His writings contain observations of Egypt and its commercial routes.

John Greaves (1638–1639)

John Greaves was an English mathematician and astronomer who travelled to Egypt to investigate the pyramids and ancient monuments. His Pyramidographia, published in 1646, contains measurements and detailed observations of the Great Pyramid and other monuments.

Jean de Thévenot (1655)

Jean de Thévenot was a French traveller who visited Egypt during his journeys through the eastern Mediterranean. His account describes Cairo, the pyramids, the Nile, Alexandria, and other Egyptian sites.

François Bernier (1656–1658)

François Bernier was a French physician and philosopher who travelled through Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean. His travel writings include observations on Egyptian geography, society, medicine, and customs.

Evliya Çelebi (from 1672)

Evliya Çelebi was an Ottoman traveller and writer who spent several years in Egypt. The tenth book of his Seyahatnâme contains extensive descriptions of Cairo, the Nile Valley, Upper Egypt, monuments, customs, and local traditions.

Johann Michael Wansleben (1672–1673)

Johann Michael Wansleben was a German scholar and traveller who travelled through Egypt on behalf of the French. He reached Upper Egypt and recorded observations of ancient monuments, Coptic Christianity, and Egyptian society.

Gemelli Careri (late 17th century)

Giovanni Francesco Gemelli Careri was an Italian traveller who undertook a journey around the world. His account includes observations from Egypt and descriptions of Cairo, the pyramids, and other monuments.

Benoît de Maillet (1692 to 1710s)

Benoît de Maillet was French general consul in Cairo (1692–1708), during which time he studied the Egyptian pyramids. His Description de l'Égypte contains extensive observations on Egyptian geography, antiquities, customs, and the Nile.

Near ancient Thebes, there are two further colossal figures seated on low rocks, at the foot of which the Nile flows during its flood. One is seated, and both undoubtedly relate to the rising waters of this river. In few other places, one comes across very long avenues lined with sphinxes, obelisks, marble statues and stones of prodigious size covered in hieroglyphic inscriptions. The ruins of Egypt are not like those found in the rest of the world.

Paul Lucas (1699–1702)

Paul Lucas was a French traveller and antiquities collector who made several journeys through Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean. His published travel account contains descriptions of Egyptian monuments, cities, and antiquities.

Claude Sicard (1707–1726)

Claude Sicard was a French Jesuit missionary who spent many years in Egypt. He travelled extensively through the country, studied its geography and antiquities, produced maps, and wrote reports and letters describing Egyptian monuments and Christian communities.

Nicolas Granger (1730–1731)

Nicolas Granger was a French traveller who visited Egypt in the early eighteenth century. His account contains observations on Egyptian cities, monuments, agriculture, and the Nile.

Frederick Louis Norden (1737–1738)

Frederick Louis Norden was a Danish naval officer and traveller who explored Egypt and Nubia. His Voyage d'Égypte et de Nubie, published posthumously in 1755, contains detailed descriptions and drawings of Egyptian monuments and landscapes.

Richard Pococke (1737–1738)

Richard Pococke was an English traveller and clergyman who visited Egypt during his extensive journey through the eastern Mediterranean. His account contains detailed descriptions of Alexandria, Cairo, the pyramids, the Nile Valley, and Upper Egypt.

Thomas Shaw (early 18th century)

Thomas Shaw was an English traveller and chaplain who travelled in North Africa and the eastern Mediterranean. His Travels, published in 1738, includes observations concerning Egypt and the wider region.

Robert Wood (18th century)

Robert Wood was a British traveller, writer, and classical scholar whose eastern travels included Egypt. His surviving notebooks and drawings record observations of ancient monuments and landscapes.

Carsten Niebuhr (1761)

Carsten Niebuhr was a German-Danish mathematician and cartographer and the only member of the Danish expedition to Arabia to return to Europe. He visited Egypt in 1761 and recorded observations, maps, and descriptions of Egyptian sites.

James Bruce (1768–1769)

James Bruce was a Scottish traveller and explorer who travelled through Egypt on his way toward Ethiopia. His published Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile contains observations of the Nile, Egyptian geography, antiquities, and society.

Sonnini de Manoncour (1777–1780)

Charles-Nicolas-Sigisbert Sonnini de Manoncour was a French naturalist who travelled extensively through Egypt. His Voyage dans la Haute et Basse Égypte contains observations on Egyptian natural history, geography, agriculture, customs, and antiquities.

Constantin-François Volney (1783–1785)

Constantin-François Volney was a French philosopher and traveller who visited Egypt and Syria. His Voyage en Syrie et en Égypte contains observations on Egyptian society, government, geography, agriculture, and ancient monuments.

William George Browne (1792–1798)

William George Browne was an English traveller who spent several years travelling through Egypt and the wider region. His Travels in Africa, Egypt, and Syria records observations of Egyptian geography, antiquities, and society.

Vivant Denon (1798–1799)

Vivant Denon was a French diplomat, artist, and writer who accompanied Napoleon's expedition to Egypt. He travelled extensively through Egypt, making drawings and detailed observations of ancient monuments. His Voyage dans la Basse et la Haute Égypte was published in 1802.

French Scientific Expedition to Egypt (1798–1801)

The French expedition to Egypt accompanying Napoleon's invasion included hundreds of scholars, engineers, artists, and scientists. Their surveys, drawings, measurements, and descriptions of Egypt were eventually published in the monumental Description de l'Égypte between 1809 and 1829.

Johann Ludwig Burckhardt (1813–1815)

Johann Ludwig Burckhardt was a Swiss traveller who travelled extensively in Egypt and Nubia. He recorded detailed observations of ancient monuments and travelled as far south as the region of Abu Simbel. He also rediscovered Petra for European audiences.

Henry Salt (1815–1827)

Henry Salt was a British diplomat, traveller, and collector who served as British consul-general in Egypt. He supported archaeological exploration and employed several important explorers and excavators, while also recording his own observations of Egypt and its antiquities.

Frédéric Cailliaud (1815–1818)

Frédéric Cailliaud was a French mineralogist, naturalist, and traveller who explored Egypt and Nubia. He documented ancient monuments and mines and produced detailed descriptions and illustrations of sites in Upper Egypt and Nubia.

Giovanni Battista Belzoni (1816)

Giovanni Battista Belzoni was an Italian explorer and engineer who travelled extensively through Egypt and Nubia. He explored and documented numerous ancient monuments and tombs, including the tomb of Seti I in the Valley of the Kings.

Maria Martin (1818)

Maria Martin was a European traveller who visited Egypt in the early nineteenth century. Her observations contribute to the growing body of European travel accounts from Egypt during the period of intensified exploration of its ancient monuments.

Jean-François Champollion (1828–1829)

Jean-François Champollion, who had deciphered the Egyptian hieroglyphic script, travelled through Egypt and Nubia in 1828–1829. He recorded inscriptions, monuments, temples, and other archaeological observations in his letters and notebooks.

Karl Richard Lepsius (1842–1845)

Karl Richard Lepsius led the Prussian expedition to Egypt and Nubia from 1842 to 1845. The expedition systematically documented temples, tombs, inscriptions, monuments, and other archaeological remains, producing the monumental Denkmäler aus Ägypten und Äthiopien.

Travellers and the Sources

Listing of travellers and where to find their accounts of Egypt.