NORDEN (Frederic Lewis), an ingenious travel-
ler and naval officer in the Danish service, was born
at Glückstadt in Holstein in the year 1708. He was
well skilled in mathematics, ship-building, and espe-
cially in architecture; and in 1732 obtained a pension
to enable him to travel for the purpose of studying
the construction of ships, particularly the galleys and
other rowing vessels used in the Mediterranean. He
spent near three years in Italy, and Christian VI.
being desirous of obtaining a circumstantial account of
Egypt, Mr Norden at Florence received an order to
extend his travels to that country. How he acquitted
himself in this commission, appears from his Travels
into Egypt and Nubia, printed at Copenhagen in
folio, 1756; and which were soon after translated in-
to English by Dr Peter Templeman. In the war be-
tween England and Spain, Mr Norden, then a cap-
tain in the Danish navy, attended count Ulric Adolphus,
a sea-captain, to England; and they went out
volunteers under Sir John Norris, and afterwards under
Sir Chaloner Ogle. During his stay in London,
Mr Norden was made a fellow of the royal society,
and gave the public drawings of some ruins and colossal
statues at Thebes in Egypt; with an account of the
same, in a letter to the royal society, 1741. His
health at this time was declining; and taking a tour
to France, he died at Paris in 1742.