Crimea—Roger Fenton | Harbour of Balaklava, The Cattle Pier, March 1855 (printed 1856)

Crimea—Roger Fenton

Harbour of Balaklava, The Cattle Pier, [March 1855]. Manchester: T. Agnew and Sons, Jan. 1st 1856

salted paper print (282 x 355mm.) on original printed mount (432 x 594mm.) with engraved title and imprint, publisher's small oval blindstamp at lower border, light spotting to mount, marginal tears with small loss at edges of mount (not affecting image)

A rare photograph and an excellent print overall with a very good tonal range. This view does not appear to be among the 428 Fenton photographs of the Crimea held in the Royal Collection.

"In 1854, Balaklava was a small port which the British thought to be a suitable place to establish themselves whilst they besieged the city of Sevastopol. Fenton arrived at Balaklava by sea on 8 March 1855. He began photographing a week later on 15 March, and for the next two weeks made a number of views in the town before heading out to the military camps nearby" (Gordon, p. 138).

LITERATURE:

Gordon, S. Shadows of War: Roger Fenton's Photographs of the Crimea, 1855 (London: Royal Collection Trust, 2017)