Isidore Jacques Eggermont (15 May 1844 - 16 April 1923) was a Belgian

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 diplomat, who was also active as a photographer

Photography

Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...

 and writer

Writer

A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....

  in North Africa

North Africa

North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...

 and Asia

Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

.

In 1874, Eggermont travelled to Egypt

Egypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

 and Palestine

Palestine

Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....

 and in 1876-1877, he travelled around the world. Possibly during the latter trip, Eggermont visited Ceylon (now Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...

) and India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. He was a councillor (conseiller, lower-grade diplomat) at the legation of Belgium in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, winter 1876-1877. He travelled extensively and took notes and photographs that were the basis of his latter monographs on Japan.
At the end of 1877, he was a secretary to the King of Belgium at Ghent

Ghent

Ghent is a city and a municipality located in the Flemish region of Belgium. It is the capital and biggest city of the East Flanders province. The city started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Lys and in the Middle Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of...

. In 1885, he was first secretary of the legation of Belgium at Paris. Descendants of the Eggermont family are still in diplomatic service today.

Publications

• Exposition internationale de Philadelphie. Rapport sur l'Exposition universelle de Philadelphie au point de vue du commerce et de l'industrie belges, par l. Eggermont, .. Bruxelles: impr. de A. Mertens, 1877. In-8, 59 p. (a report about the world expo at Philadelphia from the view of Belgian commerce and industry )
• Le Japon, Histoire et Religion, par I. Eggermont, premier secretaire de la legation de belgique a Paris, Avec une nouvelle carte du Japon. Paris (Libraire Ch. Delegrave, 15 Rue Soufflot), 1885. 156 p., 1 leaf of plates 19 cm. ("Japan, History and Religion"). Title page and a complete table of contents are at International Research Center for Japanese Studies
• Eggermont, I.: Voyage autour du globe. L' Amérique. Paris (Delagrave) 1892. 366 p. ("Travel around the globe. America", but treats Canada and U.S. only. Some 200 wood engravings, 19 maps and plan)
• Eggermont, I.: Voyage autour du globe. Japon. Paris (Delagrave) 1900. Grand in-4. 522 p., 12 maps and plans within the paginated text. ("Travel around the globe. Japan") Some pictures and a complete table of contents are at International Research Center for Japanese Studies

The 1877 and 1900 books are among the essential contemporary French-language literature about 19th century Japan.