Militairen van de Gordon Highlanders ontvangen een bericht op de heliograaf, Zuid-Afrika 1900

This stereoscopic image shows Gordon Highlanders in South Africa receiving a message on the heliograph, a device that mirrors sunlight to send signals over long distances. Likely produced in 1900 by an anonymous photographer, the photograph is made of thin paper, coated with a light-sensitive emulsion containing silver salts. The making of such images involved a complex interplay of manual skills and industrial processes. The photographer likely used a portable camera and tripod, capturing two slightly different perspectives of the scene. The printing process then demanded careful manipulation of light and chemicals to bring forth the final image. The material qualities of the photograph—its delicate paper, sepia tones, and the subtle grain of the emulsion—all speak to the historical context in which it was produced. As a mass-produced object, this photograph speaks to the rise of consumer culture and the industrialized production of imagery. By attending to the material and making of this photograph, we gain a deeper appreciation of its significance as a historical artifact, and its connection to wider social issues of labor, politics, and consumption.