Gezicht op Engelberg in Zwitserland c. 1880 - 1910

This captivating photograph of Engelberg in Switzerland was created by Photoglob & Co. Photography, at its core, is a craft deeply intertwined with chemistry and optics. Light is harnessed through a lens and manipulated to imprint an image onto a treated surface. This photograph is a testament to the advancements of its time, capturing the grandeur of the Swiss landscape with remarkable clarity. What’s striking is the level of work that went into this image. From the labor in the silver mines, to the manufacturing of the glass for the lens, to the printing of the final image, none of this comes “naturally.” Think, too, about the cultural context: a photograph like this would have been purchased as a souvenir of a trip, or sent through the mail as a postcard. By considering the materials, processes, and social context of this photograph, we gain a deeper understanding of its significance, blurring the lines between documentation, art, and commodity.