John Gersdorp, King of Saxony, Unknown Man, The Earl of Morton, Wyndam Anstruther and Sir Ralph Anstruther
David Octavius Hill
British, 1802–1870
Robert Adamson
British, 1821–1848
1844
A salted paper print from a paper negative by David Octavius Hill that records a formal, posed group portrait of six men, aiming to translate the compositional authority of painted portraiture into the new medium of photography.
You first notice the soft, low‑contrast tones and slight blur—faces and dark coats emerging from a hazy ground so the scene reads like a quiet, painterly snapshot of Victorian dignity.
An early paper‑negative photograph that helped show how photography could serve as both documentary record and artistic portraiture, influencing how likenesses and social stature would be represented and preserved.
Medium
Salted paper print from a paper negative
Dimensions
5 13/16 × 7 5/8" (14.7 × 19.3 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Gift of Warner Communications, Inc.
Accession
513.1981
Palette
Exhibitions
