Photograph thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
Request to view at the Prints & Drawings Study Room, level F , Case X, Shelf 357, Box A

Photograph

ca. 1875 (photographed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

It is likely that the altar was made on the occasion of the marriage of Duke Albrecht V of Bavaria (1528-79) and Anna of Austria (1528-90) in 1546. The left door is decorated with the Bavarian coat of arms and the right door with the Austrian coat of arms.

The Bavarian king, Ludwig II (1845-86), wished to encourage craftsmanship by having fine copies made of items in the royal collection. The photographs were hand-coloured, because colour photography did not become commercially available until the early 20th century. Salted paper, which had a matte surface, was preferred for hand-painted photographs in the second half of the 19th century.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Salted paper print with watercolour
Brief description
Hand-coloured photograph of a portable altar; 19thC; Anon, Hand coloured photograph of a cabinet
Physical description
Front view of a house altar made for Duke Albrecht of Bavaria in the Treasury of the Rich Chapel in the Royal Palace at Munich. Mounted on card. The photograph (salted paper print) is hand-coloured, with watercolour on one half of the image.


It is likely that the altar was made on the occasion of the marriage of Duke Albrecht V of Bavaria (1528-1579) and Anna of Austria (1528-1590) in 1546. The left door is decorated with the Bavarian coat of arms and the right door with the Austrian coat of arms.
Dimensions
  • Height: 42.5cm
  • Width: 28.5cm
Production typeUnlimited edition
Gallery label
It is likely that the altar was made on the occasion of the marriage of Duke Albrecht V of Bavaria (1528-1579) and Anna of Austria (1528-1590) in 1546. The left door is decorated with the Bavarian coat of arms and the right door with the Austrian coat of arms. The Bavarian king, Ludwig II (1845-1886), wished to encourage craftsmanship by having fine copies made of items in the royal collection. Since colour photography became commercially available only in the early 20th century the photographs were hand-coloured. Salted paper, which had a matte surface, was preferred for hand-painted photographs in the second half of the 19th century.(2002)
Object history
It is likely that the altar was made on the occasion of the marriage of Duke Albrecht V of Bavaria (1528-1579) and Anna of Austria (1528-1590) in 1546. The left door is decorated with the Bavarian coat of arms and the right door with the Austrian coat of arms. The Bavarian king, Ludwig II (1845-1886), wished to encourage craftsmanship by having fine copies made of items in the royal collection. Since colour photography became commercially available only in the early 20th century the photographs were hand-coloured. Salted paper, which had a matte surface, was preferred for hand-painted photographs in the second half of the 19th century.

Purchased from F.X. Zettler, Munich, 1877
Production
Attribution note: Purchased from F.X. Zettler, Munich, 1877
Reason For Production: Retail
Subjects depicted
Place depicted
Summary
It is likely that the altar was made on the occasion of the marriage of Duke Albrecht V of Bavaria (1528-79) and Anna of Austria (1528-90) in 1546. The left door is decorated with the Bavarian coat of arms and the right door with the Austrian coat of arms.

The Bavarian king, Ludwig II (1845-86), wished to encourage craftsmanship by having fine copies made of items in the royal collection. The photographs were hand-coloured, because colour photography did not become commercially available until the early 20th century. Salted paper, which had a matte surface, was preferred for hand-painted photographs in the second half of the 19th century.
Collection
Accession number
60-1961

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 createdJanuary 6, 2004
Record URL
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest