Gezicht op Château Marquis d'Alesme Becker in Margaux, Frankrijk before 1867

This is a photograph of Château Marquis d'Alesme Becker in Margaux, France, made by Alfred Danflou, and kept in an album titled 'Grands Crus Bordelais'. As we consider this image, it's worth noting that the classification of Bordeaux wines dates back to 1855, done on the occasion of the Universal Exposition in Paris. What was an economic and cultural event became enshrined, turning wine into a symbolic representation of French national identity. Here, Danflou’s photograph depicts the architecture of the Château, but it is not a neutral record. Instead it idealizes a rural landscape carefully cultivated for aristocratic pleasure and consumption. The image can teach us about the economic and social values that shape artistic production, and the resources available to those who commission artworks. By researching such institutions of art, one can better understand the role of the historian as one who brings these contexts into clearer view.