Palais de Karnak, sculptures extérieures du sanctuaire de granit. 1849 - 1851

This photograph by Maxime Du Camp captures the exterior sculptures of the granite sanctuary at the Palais de Karnak. Du Camp was among the first to make photographs of Egypt, and his images were made using the calotype process, an early photographic technique using paper negatives. What you see here is a soft, almost velvety texture, a direct result of this method. The material really dictates the image's aesthetic. But consider also the granite itself, densely carved with hieroglyphs and figures. This was an incredibly labor-intensive undertaking, and would have required highly skilled stone carvers working over long periods of time. The deep relief suggests not only the importance of the figures depicted, but also the commitment to permanence that was so central to ancient Egyptian culture. Ultimately, this image is a fascinating intersection of different kinds of making: the ancient craft of stone carving, and the then-new technology of photography, both brought together to document and preserve a moment in time.