Fotoalbum met 123 cartes-de-visite van leden van Europese vorstenhuizen, politici en bekende personen c. 1860 - 1900

This photo album, compiled by various makers, features 123 ‘cartes-de-visite’ of European royalty, politicians, and celebrities. Its dimensions are 305 mm in height, 550 mm in width, and 53 mm in thickness. The album's cover immediately grabs our attention with its geometric pattern of mother-of-pearl tiles. These iridescent squares are meticulously arranged in a diamond grid. The hard metallic fixtures at the edges create a strong contrast between the natural sheen of the shell and the crafted metalwork. Structurally, the cover's diamond pattern uses repetition to create a sense of unity, yet each tile’s unique play of light introduces subtle variation. The overall effect mirrors the function of the album itself: a collection of individual portraits brought together to form a unified representation of a social network. This invites contemplation on the nature of identity and representation within a structured social framework. The album is both a container and a display, a private object revealing public faces.