Fotoreproductie van een ontwerp van de oratie in de kerk tijdens de begrafenis van koning Léopold I van België in Laken before 1866

This photograph, by Ghémar Frères, captures the funeral oration of King Léopold I of Belgium. It was made through the wet collodion process, a technique that demanded speed and skill. The process involved coating a glass plate with a light-sensitive chemical emulsion, exposing it in the camera while still wet, and developing it immediately. The resulting image, a glass negative, was then used to make paper prints like this one. Photography in the 19th century was a labour-intensive process, and the skilled technicians who made photographs held a unique position in a rapidly industrialising society. The making of this photograph underscores the material conditions of image-making, contrasting with the pomp and circumstance it depicts. It reminds us that even the representation of royalty is a product of human labor and technical expertise.