Gezicht op de façade van het Kasteel van Pierrefonds 1850 - 1900

Méderic Mieusement created this albumen print of the Château de Pierrefonds in France sometime in the late 19th century. This imposing facade embodies the 19th-century enthusiasm for medieval architecture. The Château itself had been largely destroyed in the 17th century, but was rebuilt under the direction of the architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, a leading figure in the Gothic Revival movement. Mieusement's photograph captures the imposing scale and romantic allure of Viollet-le-Duc's reconstruction. The presence of figures in the courtyard emphasizes the Château's grandeur, yet the photograph's soft focus also contributes to a sense of nostalgia. It evokes the power of the medieval era, feeding into a contemporary fascination with chivalry and national identity. Careful archival research can reveal the precise date of the photograph, enabling us to better understand the political and cultural context in which it was made and what the revival of medievalism meant to French society at the time.