Raglan Castle, Entrance (photograph)
Fenton, Roger (Roger Fenton was one of the founders of the Photographic Society. Even though he was a brilliant and successful photographer, he was a photographer for just twelve years. In 1852 he made what are believed to be the first photographs of Russia and the Kremlin. He was however, most famous for his photographs of the Crimea in 1855 which were the first large-scale photographic documentation of war.
In 1852, Fenton (who had only taken up photography a few months earlier) travelled to Russia with the engineer Charles Vignoles who was constructing a bridge across the Dnieper River near Kiev for Czar Nicholas I. Fenton made views of Moscow and St. Petersburg, capturing the distinct architectural character of each city. These are believed to be the first photographs of Moscow and the Kremlin.)
Mounted albumenised salted paper print (from collodion glass negative). View of ruined main gateway to Raglan Castle which is covered in ivy. Five people in various poses in front of the castle.
This view shows the picturesque ivy clad ruins of the main gatehouse at Raglan Castle, Monmouthshire, which was built in the 1460s. In front of this Fenton has carefully posed five figures. In the 1850s the castle was privately owned by the Duke of Somerset and was a romantic ruin visited by wealthy tourists on the Wye Tour. The Wye Valley was, and is, renowned for its scenic beauty and is still dotted with ruins such as Tintern Abbey. Today Raglan Castle is a Grade I listed building under the guardianship of Cadw. Mounted, and signed by photographer.
(Source: 'Pastures Green and Dark Satanic Mills: The British Passion for Landscape', 2015)
Creation/Production
Date: 1856 (circa)
Acquisition
Donation, 11/2/1980
Measurements
mount
(mm): 312
mount
(mm): 400
mount
(mm): 177
mount
(mm): 214
Techniques
salted paper print
black and white (monochrome photograph)
photograph