Edinburgh from Calton Hill
David Octavius Hill
British, 1802–1870
Robert Adamson
British, 1821–1848
1843
A gelatin silver photograph by David Octavius Hill that seeks to capture the atmospheric sweep of Edinburgh from Calton Hill, using early photographic means to record its monuments and urban mood.
The castle's heavy mass and crenellated roofs dominate the foreground while spires and an obelisk dissolve into a soft, smoky distance, the image's grain and scattered white flecks lending a haunting, timeworn atmosphere.
Made in photography's early years, this image helped demonstrate the medium's ability to document urban topography while also conveying mood, bridging landscape painting traditions and a new mechanical way of seeing.
Medium
Gelatin silver print
Dimensions
11 3/8 × 14 15/16" (28.8 × 38.0 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Alfred H. Barr, Jr.
Accession
551.1967
Palette
Exhibitions
