Twee aanzichten van een menselijke schedel, bovenaanzicht en schedelbasis before 1869

This photogravure depicts two views of a human skull. Published in France as part of a series cataloging the collection ‘La Seine aux âges antéhistoriques,’ this image allows us to consider the ways that institutions like museums use photography to classify and catalogue the past. The image presents the skull from above, and then from the side. The use of photography lends a scientific air to the project of classifying human remains. This photograph was part of a larger archeological project, aiming to map out the prehistory of the Paris region, at a time of rapid social and political change. The study of human remains has always been tied to questions of identity, origin, and nationhood. Historians often rely on photographic records to understand how such remains have been interpreted, displayed, and understood at different moments in time. By understanding the context in which images like these were produced, we can analyze the intersection of scientific inquiry, national identity, and the politics of representation.