Gezicht over de baai van Napels en de Vesuvius vanaf het (voormalig) Kartuizerklooster van Sint-Martinus, Italië 1857 - 1914

This albumen print, made by Giorgio Sommer, captures the Bay of Naples and Mount Vesuvius in a bird's eye view. Sommer, who was based in Naples, was a key figure in the commercialisation of photography for the tourist trade. In this regard, albumen prints like this one were a significant industry, representing a complex intersection of craft, science, and commerce. The process involved coating paper with albumen derived from egg whites, then sensitizing it with silver nitrate, and finally exposing it to light through a negative. This resulted in a highly detailed image with a distinctive sepia tone. The materiality of albumen prints influenced their appearance, giving them a smooth surface and a subtle sheen. But what's easily overlooked is the sheer labor intensity involved in their production. The mass production of albumen paper required vast quantities of eggs, with factories employing workers to separate the whites from the yolks. This speaks to the way that photography, even in its early days, was deeply embedded in networks of labor, trade, and consumption.