Zomerpreekstoel van de Al-Aqsamoskee op de Tempelberg, Jeruzalem c. 1867 - 1877

This photograph captures the summer pulpit of the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem by Félix Bonfils. The albumen print, with its sepia tones, presents a composition dominated by architectural forms and the play of light. The arrangement of the arches and the pulpit creates a rhythmic structure, leading the eye through the sacred space. Bonfils uses light and shadow to emphasize the texture of the stone, highlighting the formal qualities of the architecture. The repetition of the archways constructs a visual echo of structural and cultural stability, yet also subtly destabilizes a singular, fixed point of view by offering multiple framed perspectives. The semiotic system inherent in architectural photography of this era suggests a desire to capture and classify cultural landmarks. Yet, the photograph goes beyond mere documentation. The carefully arranged composition and the manipulation of light propose that Bonfils' work operates within a larger discourse of orientalism and representation, inviting ongoing interpretation and re-interpretation.