960 - Unknown (19th century), Chillon Castle on Lake Geneva, 1881, albumen paper print

Unknown (19th century), Chillon Castle on Lake Geneva, 1881, albumen paper print Unknown (19th century): View of Château de Chillon on a rocky island on the shores of Lake Geneva, 1881, albumen paper print Technique: albumen paper print, mounted on paper Date: 1881 Description: Inscribed and dated “Schloß Chillon | Auf der Reise n Zermatt 1881” in pencil on the reverse of the backing. Original photograph with high sharpness of detail. An early example of travel photography. Around the middle of the 19th century, more and more tourists from bourgeois circles traveled throughout Europe. At that time, taking photographs required a great deal of time and involved expensive, cumbersome equipment. This made many tourists all the more grateful for the services of professional photography studios on site, allowing them to bring back a souvenir from their vacation or collect them as mementos. Photographers captured the most famous sights of their hometowns and cities and traveled themselves to photograph their customers’ favorite destinations, offering these images as albumen prints. Ancient art treasures were also photographed and offered to travelers. The high-quality photographs of sculptures and frescoes continued to make an important contribution to documenting these art treasures and making them accessible to scholars from all over Europe, who previously had to rely on copies or engravings if they were unable to view the originals themselves. Keywords: Switzerland; View; Lake Geneva; Montreux, 19th century, Historicism, Architecture, Switzerland, Size: Albumen paper: 9.8 cm x 15.5 cm (3.9 x 6.1 in) Condition: Good condition. Pale mold stains are visible across the entire sheet. Striped scuffing is visible in the center left. There are minimal creases along the upper edge of the sheet as well as an inconspicuous tear at the margin.