Fontaine Egyptienne dite du Fellah

The Fontaine du Fellah stands on the rue de Sèvres as a direct result of Napoleon Bonaparte's fascination with his military campaign in Egypt. Built in eighteen hundred and six, this fountain was one of fifteen commissioned by the emperor to provide fresh drinking water to the city while simultaneously commemorating his expedition. Its design embraces the neo-Egyptian style that swept through Paris during the early nineteenth century, featuring a temple-shaped portal topped with an imperial eagle. The figure at the center of the fountain is frequently mistaken for a pharaoh, but it actually depicts a fellah, which is an Arabic term for a peasant or farmer. Despite this humble label, the sculpture is a direct homage to an ancient Roman statue of Antinous, the favorite of Emperor Hadrian, shown dressed as the Egyptian god Osiris. You are looking at a nineteenth-century artistic interpretation that blends Roman antiquity with Egyptian motifs to satisfy the imperial tastes of the era.