The Valley of Jehoshaphat, Jerusalem (Plate 14)
Francis Frith
British, 1822–1898
1858-60
A mid-19th-century albumen silver print by Francis Frith portraying the Valley of Jehoshaphat near Jerusalem, made to document the biblical landscape for European viewers with both documentary precision and pictorial care.
What strikes you first is the broad, arid sweep—terraced hills punctuated by olive trees, rock-cut tombs (including a small pyramid-roofed monument) set into limestone cliffs, and a quiet ribbon of water in the foreground that together form a silent, archaeological tableau.
This image exemplifies early photographic expeditions that used the new medium to record and authorize sites of historical and religious importance, helping to shape Western images of the Holy Land and demonstrating photography’s value for both aesthetic and scholarly purposes.
Medium
Albumen silver print
Dimensions
6 1/2 × 8 3/4" (16.5 × 22.3 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Acquired by exchange with George Eastman House
Accession
41.1974.15
Palette
Exhibitions
