Nineteenth-Century international photographs, 1870-1900
Collection context
- Creator:
- Bonfils, Félix, 1831-1885, Kusakabe, Kinbē, 1841-1932, Mauri, Achille, 1805-1883, Sébah, Pascal, 1823-1886, Sommer, Giorgio, 1834-1914, Scowen & Co., and Sebah & Joaillier
- Extent:
- 195 photographs
- Language:
- Italian , English , French .
- Scope and content:
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This collection contains primarily landscape and cityscape views primarily taken by professional photographers at international sites during the last quarter of the 19th century.
Photographers represented include Félix Bonfils, Kinbē Kusakabe, LaRoche Photo, Achille Mauri, Scowen& Co., J. Pascal Sébah, Sebah & Joaillier, and Giorgio Sommer. Only those images from Hawaii appear to have been made by an amateur photographer.
Locations represented are Ceylon, Egypt, France, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Turkey, and the United States (Alaska and Hawaii). All images are albumen prints, mounted on boards. All images from Japan are also hand-tinted.
- Biographical / historical:
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Although the collector of this group of photographs is unidentified, many American and European architects in the 19th-century typically gathered images of important classical and "exotic" sites as souvenirs of travels and for design inspiration. Dozens of the sites in this collection, especially those in Paris, Istanbul, Cairo, and Japan, were particularly popular, and many of these images were issued by the photographers and their publishers in specially marketed series. It is possible that some of these images may be related to the collection of international photography gathered by New York architect and historian Russell Sturgis, now held by Washington University in St. Louis.
Access and use
- Restrictions:
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This collection is available for use by appointment in the Department of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University. For further information, please email avery-drawings@library.columbia.edu.
- Terms of access:
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Columbia University is providing access to the materials in the Library's collections solely for noncommercial educational and research purposes. The unauthorized use, including, but not limited to, publication of the materials without the prior written permission of Columbia University is strictly prohibited. All inquiries regarding permission to publish should be submitted in writing to the Director, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University. For additional guidance, see Columbia University Libraries' publication policy.
In addition to permission from Columbia University, permission of the copyright owner (if not Columbia University) and/or any holder of other rights (such as publicity and/or privacy rights) may also be required for reproduction, publication, distributions, and other uses. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of any item and securing any necessary permissions rests with the persons desiring to publish the item. Columbia University makes no warranties as to the accuracy of the materials or their fitness for a particular purpose.
- Preferred citation:
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Nineteenth-Century International Photographs, Dept. of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University.
- Location of this collection:
- Before you visit:
- Researchers are encouraged to request materials at least one month in advance. You will receive an email from the department within 2-3 business days confirming your request and currently available appointment times. Requests are limited to 8 boxes per day (or equivalent), with a maximum of 5 boxes for off-site materials, 5 folders of drawings, or 5 rolls or tube boxes.
- Contact:
- avery-drawings@columbia.edu