Antoine-Laurent Castellan (1772 - 1838)

Antoine-Laurent Castellan

Antoine-Laurent Castellan was a French painter, engraver and architect.

Castellan traveled to Turkey, Greece, Italy and Switzerland. He was the official artist of the mission of Engineer Ferrego to the court of Sultan Selim III, spending several months in Constantinople in 1797. Castellan was a prolific draughtsman, making notes of everything he saw in Constantinople, and also engaged in portrait painting of socialites, which he captured in numerous works he published on his return to France. His best-known work is The Manners, Customs and Costumes of the Otomans and a Brief Account of their History, published in 1812.