Christian Tuxen Falbe (5 April 1791 – 19 July 1849) was a Danish naval officer, archaeologist, explorer, cartographer and diplomat.

Biography

Falbe was born at

Helsingør Helsingør ( , ; ), classically known in English as Elsinore ( ), is a coastal city in northeastern Denmark. Helsingør Municipality had a population of 63,953 on 1 January 2025, making it the 23rd most populated municipality in Denmark. Helsin ...

. He was the son of Ulrik Anton Falbe (1746–1795), an inspector at Øresund Custom House and the father of the diplomat Christian Frederik Falbe (1828–1896). In 1807, he became a second lieutenant. He was appointed lieutenant-lieutenant in 1815. By 1820, he became a lieutenant-captain. He was a

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...

to the Beylik of Tunis between 1821 and 1831. In 1833, he was relocated to Greece. Between 1837–38, he undertook a voyage in the Algerian provinces of Constantine and

Tunis Tunis (, ') is the capital city, capital and largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as "Grand Tunis", has about 2,700,000 inhabitants. , it is the third-largest city in the Maghreb region (after Casabl ...

. In 1838, he participated in a scientific expedition to study the ruins of

Carthage Carthage was an ancient city in Northern Africa, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classic ...

. He was the first to perform an archaeological survey on the site of Carthage and the first to produce a modern map of Tunis. In 1841, he resigned as a vessel commander-in-chief. From 1842, he was director of the king's collections at

Amalienborg Amalienborg () is the official residence for the Danish royal family and is located in Copenhagen. Frederick VIII's palace complex has four identical Classical façades, effectively four palaces, with Rococo interiors, laid around an octagona ...

and, from 1847, director of the royal coin cabinet at

Rosenborg Castle Rosenborg Castle () is a renaissance castle in Copenhagen, Denmark. The castle was originally built as a country summerhouse in 1606 and is an example of Christian IV's many architectural projects. It was built in the Dutch Renaissance style, t ...

. In 1813, he received the Knights' Cross of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...

. He died in 1849 and was buried at Holmen Cemetery (''Holmens Kirkegård'') in Copenhagen.

References

Bibliography

* ''Recherches sur l’emplacement de Carthage'' (planches), Paris, Imprimé par autorisation du roi à l'Imprimerie Royale, Paris, Service historique de la Défense, Archives du département de la Marine, 1833 * ''Description du plan de Tunis et de Carthage'', Copenhague, Service historique de la Défense, Département de l'armée de terre, 1-M 1675. Asie et Afrique, Mémoires et reconnaissance/inventaire/série 1M tome II. F 141-166, 1832

Literature

* Houda Baïr
« La première carte moderne de Tunis (1831-1832). Le travail de Falbe en contexte »
''Revue européenne de géographie'' (2009). {{DEFAULTSORT:Falbe, Christian Tuxen 1791 births 1849 deaths Danish naval commanders of the Napoleonic Wars People from Helsingør 19th-century Royal Danish Navy officers 19th-century Danish diplomats Danish cartographers Knights of the Order of the Dannebrog Tuxen family Consuls for Denmark