Neptunusfontein in de Lustgarten, Potsdam 1879

Johann Friedrich Stiehm made this albumen print of the Neptunbrunnen in Potsdam, Germany, in 1879. The image shows the fountain as a part of its environment, the Lustgarten, or pleasure garden, and emphasizes the fountain’s monumental character. The fountain is a public monument that carries social, cultural, and political meanings, and it promotes social cohesion and national identity. In this photo, Stiehm seems to celebrate the values of the German Empire through its grand public works. The Neptunbrunnen embodies the imperial ambitions of the Hohenzollern rulers through its art and architecture. Historians have analyzed the architecture and statuary of Potsdam in order to reveal its self-conscious imitation of Versailles, and so we can understand this photograph as a record of the values of the German empire that are reflected in its monuments.