NIEPCE DE ST. VICTOR, CLAUDE-FELIX-ABEL, a French chemist and photographer, was b. at Saint Cyr, near Chalon-sur -Saone, July 26, 1805. He served for some time in the army; but having made an important chemical discovery in connection with dyeing, he was permitted to exchange into the municipal guard of Paris, that he might pursue his scientific studies with more facility. This was in 1845, at which time his attention having been forcibly attracted to the important discoveries in photography which had been made by his uncle Nicephore Niepce (see Puorouiterna), he resolved to devote his energies to this subject. He was led, in 1847, to the discovery of methods for obtaining images on glass, coated with albumen, starch, or gelatine, and for reproducing designs by the use of vapor of iodine. IIis investigations were for a time interrupted by the revolution of 1848, but he soon resumed them, directing his attention more especially to the obtaining of photographic images in colors; and before the close of 1852, he had suc ceeded in obtaining faithfully colored images of flowers, natural and artificial, colOred engravings, gold and silver lace, etc., upon silvered plates which had been sensitized by a chloride of copper. In obtaining these pictures, both photographic printing and the camera were employed; but to his intense disappointment, lie found that the colors sood began to fade, and after a time disappeared. This process he named " lieliochrome."
His third and most important invention, that of the art of "heliography," or the pro duction of engraved steel-plates by photography, was first communicated to the of sciences in May; 1853. not, deserve the credit of haying originated the idea; for his uncle. previous to 1839, laid donininnicated an imperfect sketch of a similar invention to M. Arago; and Mr. Talbot and others had succeeded by a similar process in °Utah ug imacres of simple objects on steel plates; hut to Niepce belongs the credit of o having removed the almost insurmountable manipulative difficulties, and rendered the process of much more general application, thus making it practically serviceable. He afterwards employed himself in improving and perfecting his various discoveries.
In 1855 lie published the various memoirs in which he had at different times com municated nis three great discoveries to the academy of sciences, under the title of Recherches Photographiqaes, which was followed, in 1856, by Trait Pratique de Gra vure stir Acier et sum Verre. He presented to the academy a number of memoirs on the action of light on a variety of substances, the last being Sur l' Action de in Lumiere et de l'Electricite (Feb., 1860). Niepee's scientific studies did not interfere with his military promotion, as he was successively appointed chef-d'escadron, and (1854) commandant of the Louvre. He died in April, 1870.