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1 of 253523 objects
B Poole : Ryde
Catalogue of HM The Queen's Private Negatives, Vol.I (binding) c. 1891
Leather binding | 46.8 x 42.7 cm (whole object) | RCIN 2507428
B Poole : Ryde
Catalogue of HM The Queen's Private Negatives, Vol. I (binding) c. 1891
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A binding that formerly contained a catalogue of approximately two hundred pages (RCINs 2931295 - 2931486), each supporting between one and ten carbon prints, of various sizes and subject. Many of the original and copy glass negatives relating to the carbon prints still exist, and are held by the Royal Collection.
The catalogue is Vol. I of a set of three of Queen Victoria's Private Negatives, the result of a project spanning many years. Work on re-photographing and cataloguing the queen's collection was begun by William Bambridge in 1854, and continued by Cornelius Jabez Hughes from the late 1870s. In 1883 Hughes formed a partnership with Gustav William Henry Mullins, and the pair worked on the project until Hughes' death in 1884. Mullins then continued alone and completed the catalogues in the early 1890s, the final volumes being bound by 1891.
The carbon prints contained in the catalogues were printed from both original and copy glass negatives, the latter taken from the queen's pre-existing photographs. One possible motivation for this undertaking was that Queen Victoria was worried that her photographs were fading, so commissioned a set of permanent copies to be made. The catalogues also permitted the queen to travel with a set of prints between royal residences. They equally attest to the queen's personal enjoyment of photography and emotional connection to the people, places and objects that she loved.
The catalogues are organised primarily by subject matter, beginning with portraits of Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, the royal children and the queen's mother, the Duchess of Kent. They continue with photographs of animals including dogs, cattle and other species that inhabited the royal farms and Home Park. Next are photographs of royal residences, followed by a variety of subjects which include portraits of Highland troops, soldiers from the Crimean War and Shakespearean actors.Provenance
Commissioned by Queen Victoria, c. 1890
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Creator(s)
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Medium and techniques
Leather binding
Measurements
46.8 x 42.7 cm (whole object)
Category
Object type(s)
