Image of Gallery in South Kensington
Request to view at the Prints & Drawings Study Room, level F , Case X, Shelf 601, Box D

Natural History Museum, South Kensington, design by Robert Kerr, 1864

Photograph
ca. 1864 (photographed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Photographs and photographers were present from the very beginning of the V&A's history and the Museum has an extensive collection of images from the 1850s through to the present which documents the construction and development of the V&A and the South Kensington site.

Originally collected by the National Art Library as part of a programme to record works of art, architecture and design in the interest of public education, these topographic and architectural views were valued as records and as source material for students of architecture and design. As well as being crucial records of the history of the V&A, and an important element within the National Art Library's visual encyclopaedia, these photographs are also significant artefacts in the history of the art of photography.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleNatural History Museum, South Kensington, design by Robert Kerr, 1864 (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Albumen print
Brief description
Photograph, Natural History Museum, South Kensington, design by Robert Kerr, 1864, albumen print, ca. 1860s
Physical description
A mounted sepia-coloured photograph of a drawing for an institutional building. Along the bottom half of the plan is the layout of the rooms of the building.
Marks and inscriptions
'1845' (ink, bottom of print. This date is too early for the photograph as the competition for the design of the Natural History Museum did not take place until 1860, so this plan and its photograph had to have been made much later than the 1845 date.)
Subjects depicted
Place depicted
Summary
Photographs and photographers were present from the very beginning of the V&A's history and the Museum has an extensive collection of images from the 1850s through to the present which documents the construction and development of the V&A and the South Kensington site.

Originally collected by the National Art Library as part of a programme to record works of art, architecture and design in the interest of public education, these topographic and architectural views were valued as records and as source material for students of architecture and design. As well as being crucial records of the history of the V&A, and an important element within the National Art Library's visual encyclopaedia, these photographs are also significant artefacts in the history of the art of photography.
Collection
Accession number
1845-1937

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdJuly 1, 2009
Record URL
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest