Portaal van de Süleymaniye-moskee in Istanboel 1854 - 1867

This photograph of the Süleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul was created using a process called albumen print, popular in the mid-19th century. It involved coating paper with egg white and then silver nitrate, making it sensitive to light. The appeal of albumen prints lay in their sharp detail and tonal range. But the process was laborious, requiring careful control of variables like temperature and chemical concentrations. The negative had to be pressed firmly against the prepared paper, demanding a high degree of skill. Consider the social context. Photography at this time was booming. This particular print probably found its way into albums of Western tourists, eager to collect images of faraway lands. It reflects the global circulation of images, and the commercialization of culture, even in the 1800s. Paying attention to materials and making helps us see these early photographs as more than simple records of reality, they’re products of skilled labor and social forces.