Versailles (Vase)
Eugène Atget
French, 1857–1927
1905
An albumen silver print from 1905 by Eugène Atget that records a grand ornamental vase at Versailles as part of his patient inventory of Parisian monuments and everyday city details.
The frame is dominated by a weathered neoclassical urn—its carved grapes, swags, and fluted base rendered in crisp texture while the formal fountains and tree-lined terraces of Versailles recede softly in warm sepia behind it.
Atget’s quiet, documentary images helped establish photography as a tool for preserving architectural and urban memory, influencing later modernist and archival approaches to the city.
Medium
Albumen silver print
Dimensions
Approx. 8 9/16 × 7 1/16" (21.8 × 18 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Abbott-Levy Collection. Acquired through the generosity of Shirley C. Burden, and Family of Man Fund
Accession
1.1969.123
Palette
Art Terms
Exhibitions
