Waiting for the Royal family at entrance to Palace 1886 - 1888

Curator: Good morning! We are standing before Henry Hamilton Bennett’s stereograph, “Waiting for the Royal family at entrance to Palace," created between 1886 and 1888. It’s a fascinating piece of photography that transports you right into that time, isn't it? Editor: Absolutely, and the first thing that strikes me is the anticipation, the sense of suspended time. Look at these horses and figures, shrouded in what looks like fur, all paused before that formidable stone façade. There’s almost a mythical quality to it. Curator: Precisely! This was shot during the St. Paul Ice Carnival, a grand winter festival in Minnesota. What appears to be a palace is, in fact, an enormous ice structure. Bennett masterfully captures a scene of great pomp and ceremony, yet it’s fleeting. Editor: So the “royal family” is perhaps a symbolic or even theatrical representation. I’m curious about the cultural context here. This was a period of massive industrial expansion but also social stratification. Carnival traditions have often served as a space to subvert societal norms. Was this also about reflecting and playing with social hierarchies? Curator: It's a really important aspect, and it seems to be, in its temporary fantasy. The choice to stage this pageantry with an ice palace adds another layer; it acknowledges the impermanence of power and social structures, turning grandeur into something wonderfully ephemeral. Like sandcastles at high tide. Editor: And looking at the people and animals cloaked in what I assume is cold-weather attire, they're almost dehumanized, becoming part of this decorative, ceremonial spectacle. The picture plays out tensions between the individual and mass events and spectacle. It speaks to a moment in history where identities are expressed within the rigid constraints of society, almost like cogs waiting for the big event. Curator: That image of “cogs” is astute. Bennett presents them almost as elements in a tableau. This photograph doesn't merely document an event; it orchestrates an atmospheric, introspective stage. Thank you so much for providing further enriching layers! Editor: Thank you for that evocative perspective! Now when looking again I see those ephemeral qualities reflecting social ideas in new ways, and just how complex events really are.