19thC; Jones Calvert, Street scene

Stone buildings incorporating an open Norman arch, to the right is a gable end with a decorated gothic window. The open foreground area is occupied by a lampost, a man wearing a top hat leans agains it. There is some general fading especially to the upper part of the image and a narrow band of fading to the left.

During the 1830s William Henry Fox Talbot invented a way of making paper negatives and from them multiple paper prints. In doing so, he laid the foundations of modern photography. Calvert Jones learned of these developments in 1839 through a neighbour who was a cousin of Talbot. Jones lived in South Wales and he made many photographs there and in the West of England. He also travelled widely, making photographs on the continent. Jones' work stands out in the early development of photography because he was one of the first to apply a schooled artist's eye to the medium

Jones stayed in or passed through Bristol on numerous occasions while travelling to other destinations from his home in South Wales. Many of Jones' photographs in Bristol focus on the architecture of a past age; he recorded several medieval buildings at a time when many were disappearing rapidly to Victorian development. PH.49-1983 provides a detailed view of the arch.

College Square lies in the centre of Old Bristol and the Norman archway was originally the gateway to St Augustin's Abbey. The abbey was founded in 1140, but only the gateway remains.

The rounded Norman archway and the medieval buildings of College Square were photographed by the calotype process. The process was invented by William Henry Fox Talbot during the 1830sn 1839. The photographer, Calvert Jones was introduced to the process by a cousin of Talbot and by close friends who lived near to Jones in South Wales.

Jones' work stands out in the early development of photography because of his ability to fuse his new skill in photography with his experience as a watercolorist. Many of Jones' photographs in Bristol focus on the architecture of a past age; he recorded several medieval buildings at a time when many were disappearing rapidly to Victorian development. College Square lies in the centre of Old Bristol and the Norman archway was originally the gateway to St Augustin's Abbey. In this photograph Jones uses his knowledge of composition to position a figure by a lamppost to incorporate a foreground element.
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PH.37-1983