San Marco te Florence before 1863

Giacomo Brogi made this albumen print of San Marco in Florence sometime in the mid-19th century. But what does it mean to look at the religious architecture of Florence through the lens of early photography? Brogi was one of a number of photographers who found a ready market in Risorgimento Italy, documenting its architecture and landscapes for both locals and tourists. In many ways, photography here is employed as a tool in the making of modern Italy, establishing a shared visual culture and sense of national identity. The image shows the church as a symbol of both religious authority and local identity. But it also implicitly invokes the history of art institutions in Florence and their role in shaping cultural values. Brogi’s image is not just a picture of a building; it is a record of the cultural forces that have shaped Italian society. To fully understand this photograph, scholars would need to investigate archives. What was the relationship between photography and tourism in 19th-century Italy? And how do images such as this contribute to the construction of national identity?