Drie mannen poserend bij een reliëf bij een ingang van de Zaal van Honderd Zuilen in Persepolis c. 1880 - 1895

This photograph shows three men posing next to a relief at the entrance to the Hall of Hundred Columns in Persepolis. It was taken by Antoine Sevruguin in the late 19th or early 20th century. The photograph is a window into the history of archaeological exploration and its relationship to colonial power. In the 19th century, ancient sites like Persepolis became objects of intense interest for European scholars and travelers. Photography played a crucial role in documenting and disseminating images of these sites. Yet, figures like Sevruguin, of mixed Russian, Georgian, and Armenian background, further east, were able to profit from tourism. The figures in the photograph are situated in relation to the ruins. We need to ask to what extent are they meant to represent a symbolic domination of the present over the past? Or is it a kind of commercial transaction? By consulting travel logs, accounts of archaeological expeditions, and photographic archives, we can reconstruct a richer understanding of the complex social, cultural, and political dynamics at play in this image.