Gezicht op het Dal van Hinnom bij Jeruzalem c. 1867 - 1895

Curator: Let's discuss this compelling print, "Gezicht op het Dal van Hinnom bij Jeruzalem," or "View of the Hinnom Valley near Jerusalem," captured sometime between 1867 and 1895 by Maison Bonfils. It’s an albumen print, which was a very common photographic process at the time. Editor: It's immediately serene, yet somehow somber. The way the light settles on those terraces... they seem ancient, burdened, maybe even a bit haunted. Curator: Albumen prints are created using a coating of egg white on paper, which gives the photograph its glossy surface and contributes to its sharpness. The process speaks to the era's intersection of scientific advancement and artistic aspiration in rendering the physical world. Think of the labor and expense just to document this place. Editor: Right. The Valley of Hinnom itself... historically a site associated with sacrifice, now visually subdued. It is striking how Bonfils invites contemplation through this contrast. One can feel the passage of time and imagine the lives imprinted on this terrain. Curator: And that sense of 'passage' is directly tied to the technique. Albumen printing required careful preparation and a rather long exposure time. The very materiality of the image – the egg white, the silver salts – renders both a visual record and a testament to human intervention and transformation. It’s a landscape shaped by physical and social forces. Editor: Yes! Like a memory clinging to a physical object. The sepia tones evoke not only the period but also a layer of myth or legend. This is not merely a photograph of a valley, it's an echo of stories. Curator: It offers us a powerful view into both photographic practice of the late 19th century and a culturally charged landscape in the Middle East. Editor: I see a world rendered into quiet dignity through light and chemistry. Beautiful and sobering.