Zuidoosthoek van de Sint-Servaaskerk te Maastricht 1893

This is a photograph of the southeast corner of the Sint-Servaaskerk in Maastricht, made at an unknown date by an anonymous photographer from Monumentenzorg, the Dutch heritage agency. The print is on albumen paper, a popular choice in the 19th century. The process involved coating paper with egg white and then silver nitrate, creating a surface sensitive to light. The resulting image has a distinctive warm tone and fine detail, which you can see in the stone masonry of the church. Look closely, and you can appreciate the labor involved in both constructing the building and documenting it through photography. Stonemasons, who acquired a specialized knowledge about the properties of the stone, would have worked for years building the church. Monumentenzorg’s photographer captured it with technical skill to document the country’s architectural heritage. Considering the materials and processes used in both the building and the photograph helps us to understand the cultural value placed on preserving such sites, and the skills and labor required to do so.