Edward Lear (London 1812-1888 San Remo, Italy)

Shortly after Christmas 1953, Lear set off up the Nile with a party he had met in Cairo, travelling leisurely by boat as far as Aswan and the first cataract. Lear was clearly captivated by the form of the Egyptian boats; in his letter of 4 January 1854 to his sister Ann he wrote 'the most beautiful feature is the number of boats, which look like giant moths, -& sometimes there is a fleet of 20 or 30 in sight at once'.