Photograph (Experimental Photogenic Drawing), by Sir John Herschel, October 13, 1839 | |||||||||||
Inventory Number: | 43358 | ||||||||||
Object Type: | | ||||||||||
Persons: |
Sir John Frederick William Herschel (Photographer) | ||||||||||
Date Created: | 1839 | ||||||||||
Accession Number: | 1928-71 | ||||||||||
Brief Description: | Experimental photogenic drawing by Sir John Herschel, October 13, 1839, made as a hypo fixing experiment or guinea-pig, then used for a bleaching and reviving experiment. The photographic image has been whitened (made to disappear) and then successfully revived. The companion experiment 98244 is paler; a more similar companion is 58012 (without annotataion). The process is related to the invisible writing experiments at about the same time, and to the concept of a latent image, anticipating Talbot's discovery of the latent image by almost a year; but was perhaps more immediately relevant to Herschel's use of bleaching methods in conjunction with hypo fixing in order to achieve cleaner highlights. Subject: engraving 59552, lady with turban Technique: contact copy Format: vertical Polarity: negative Orientation: laterally reversed Quality: poor Colour: sepia, brown border, plain back Chemistry: silver based, hypo fixed, afterwards bleached with corrosive sublimate (mercuric chloride) and revived using a secret chemical Coating: none Inscription: number, signature, dates, chemical and procedural notes Paper: normal Condition: good, top left corner torn off Purpose: a bleaching and reviving experiment, see above. For fuller descriptive and historical commentary see narratives. | ||||||||||
Primary Inscriptions: | '623' and 'JFWH. Oct 13. (HS)2' and added a few days later 'Oct 18 Whitened entirely by CS. then | restored by [... crossed out heavily] ... [4 dots sic]' [corrosive sublimate; the deleted part looks like one word followed by H; in Herschel's hand]. | ||||||||||
Provenance: | Presented by Miss Herschel and Lady Lubbock in 1928. They were the two surviving and youngest children of Sir John Herschel (Francisca and Constance). | ||||||||||
Collection Group: | Herschel's Photographic Experiments | ||||||||||
Material(s): |
Paper | ||||||||||
Dimensions: |
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Narratives | |||||||||||
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