Arles, Amphithéâtre 1857 - 1860

Edouard Baldus captured the Arles Amphitheater with his camera, immortalizing it in a photograph. Baldus was one of the first photographers commissioned by the French government to document national monuments. The images are more than mere documents: they embody the intersection of cultural heritage, national identity, and the power dynamics inherent in the act of documentation itself. This commission came at a time when France was grappling with its own identity, seeking to define itself through its historical landmarks. What does it mean to choose to remember these places? And for whom are these monuments preserved? Baldus's work prompts a critical look at whose stories are being told. This image echoes with the voices of those who built, fought, and were spectators within these walls, reminding us of the complex layers of history embedded in the amphitheater's stones. It challenges us to consider the silences and erasures that accompany such grand narratives of history and invites us to reflect on our own relationship to the past.