Photograph by Charles Thurston Thompson, Silver-gilt Salver, Royal Palace of Ajuda, Lisbon, albumen print, 1866

A sepia-coloured mounted photograph of a highly ornate large platter bound with 19 other photographs, each with printed text, in an album with introductory text and table of contents.

This is one of 20 photographs bound in an album published by the Arundel Society. Founded in 1848, the aim of the socieity was to promote a greater knowledge of art through the publication of literary works and reproductions. Following from Henry Cole's determination to make the South Kensington Museum's collection of reproductions as comprehensive as possible, the Museum in 1866 entered into an arrangment with the Arundel Society to publish and sell reproductions, including fictile ivories and photographs of objects exhibited at the Museum. In addition, the arrangment included the publication and sale of a series of books entitled 'Examples of Art Workmanship of Various Ages and Countries'. These books, which appeared between 1866 and 1875, consisted of a short introduction and photographic illustrations. This photograph is from the publication dedicated to 'Decorative Plate, chiefly Portuguese, German and Italian', published in 1869.

Sir Henry Cole, the first director of South Kensington Museum (now the V&A) understood the importance of photography as an extension of the resources of the Museum. He saw a role for photography in terms of documenting and promoting the Museum’s collection, as well as a tool for art education. In 1856, When Cole appointed his brother-in-law, Charles Thurston Thompson, as Museum Photographer, the first museum photographic service was born.

Under Cole’s direction, the Museum sourced photographs from a wide range of suppliers and sponsored photographic campaigns abroad. In 1866, Thurston Thompson traveled to Iberia armed with a registry of desirable items for photographing. Included among the list were objects from the collections of the Royal Palaces in Lisbon. The lack of contextuality of these photographs points to Thurston Thompson’s belief in his role as a documentary photographer.

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