Aqueduct bridge, No 3 near Culegarten, 7 miles from Loch Katrine before 1889

This photograph of the Aqueduct Bridge was taken by T. & R. Annan & Sons. While the firms were purveyors of fine art photography, here they’ve documented an engineering project, recording the built environment. The image shows the bridge’s stone piers and wooden trough set against the rough Scottish landscape. The bridge's construction is a testament to human labor and the manipulation of materials to serve industrial needs. Each stone was quarried, cut, and set, involving considerable manual work. Likewise, the wooden trough, likely made from timber felled and milled nearby, evokes a sense of materiality and craftsmanship. By focusing on the bridge, the Annan studio directs our attention not only to the practical application of engineering but also to the broader implications of industrial progress. The aqueduct bridge signifies a profound shift in how humans interact with and shape the environment, underscoring the connection between human labor, industrial materials, and landscape.