pascal xavier coste

 b. 1787 Marseille, France.

 Pascal Xavier Coste was a French architect, but he was most-famously known for his illustrated accounts of his travels around Persia. 

His studies began in famed architect, Shaan Penchaud’s studio. In 1814, he moved to Paris to study at the École des Beaux-Arts. This is where he was introduced to Mehmet Ali, the viceroy of Egypt, by geographer Edme Francois. Ali took Coste on as his architect in 1817, allowing him to travel to Egypt with tasks to construct canals and re-organise defences of Aboukir. 

Coste went back to France in 1825, with a number of illustrative drawings of Cairo’s architecture, but soon returned to Egypt upon the request of Mehmet Ali, where he was made the chief engineer for Lower Egypt. Upon his return to France in 1829, he became a professor at the École des Beaux-Arts.

In addition to Egypt he travelled extensively, but his journey through the Middle East caught the attention of Louis-Philippe I, who made Coste the chief architect of Marseille in 1844. 

Coste travelled tirelessly even in old age and left up to 30 albums of drawings on his death; these are now at the Bibliothèque de Marseille.

Works

BUILDINGS

Église Saint-Lazare – Marseille, France, 1833.

Église Saint-Joseph – Marseille, France, 1833.

Église de Saint-Barnabé – Marseille, France, 1846.

Église de Mazargues – Marseille, France, 1851.

Palais de la Bourse – Marseille, France. 

Pavillons of the cours Saint-Louis – Marseille, France.

PUBLISHED WORKS

‘Title’, Gallery – City, Country, Year.

‘Map of Lower Egypt’, dedicated to Muhammad Ali, P. C. , laid down routes and surveys, 1818-1827 , slnd v . 1830, 4to .

‘Note on a dolmen that exists in Draguignan’, with Audiffret, edited by Barlatier - Feissat and Demonchy, s . d. , br . , 8vo .

‘Arabic Architecture and monuments of Cairo’, measured and drawn from 1818 to 1826 , edited by Firmin Didot, 1837 g . in- ° F, 70 flat .

‘Travel in Persia’, with Flandin, edited by Gide and Baudry, 1851, 2 vols. 8vo, and 6-in- f ° of All which five of plates and 1 of notes.

‘Modern Monuments of Persia measured, drawn and described’, edited by Morel, 1867 g . in- f ° , 71 pl. notes and neck .

‘The Cathedral of Saint Petersburg. Future Marseille Cathedral’, edited by Olive, 1874, br . , 8vo .

‘Palais de la Bourse’, Marseille , as above

‘Memory of an artist’, as above

‘Notes and souvenirs (1817-1877)’, edited by Cayer, 1878, 2 vols. 8vo, portr .