Emperor Pedro II shares three photographs of Damascus in Syria.
- Handwritten letter from the Count d'Eu.
- A leaf.
- In French.
- 12.8 cm x 20.6 cm.
- February 16, 1877.
- Excellent condition conservation.
- Unique piece.
Translation from French to Portuguese
"The Emperor has instructed the Princess and me to send him the enclosed letter, as well as the small roll that accompanies it, which contains three photographic views of the city of Damascus."
Who among us hasn't asked a friend traveling to the United States to bring us the latest technological gadget? Perhaps the newest cell phone, or a computer with super memory; in fact, sometimes progress takes a while to reach our shores. However, it wasn't always like that. I bet you didn't imagine that, in the 19th century, the best technology of the time arrived first on this side of the Atlantic. The reason? Dom Pedro II, the Emperor of Brazil, a cultured man, a lover of arts and sciences, and an enthusiast of modern innovations. Pedro II fostered the founding of schools, theaters, and libraries, but he had a special passion: photography.
In 1836, the first photograph in human history was created by the Frenchman Joseph Niépce, who used a camera obscura. This invention quickly evolved, and Niépce, along with another French scientist, Daguerre, registered the invention of the daguerreotype, a primitive photographic camera, in 1839. Only four months later, the discovery was already making headlines in Brazilian newspapers. It's worth remembering that, in the 19th century, this was a record time. Even more impressive is that, in 1840, the daguerreotype arrived in Brazil through the emperor, who from then on entered the history of photography in the country.
Emperor Pedro II boosted the production of daguerreotypes and photographic equipment in Brazil, and personally documented many moments of his life. Furthermore, he was an avid consumer of pioneering national photographers and promoted the artistic and cultural development of the country, providing public and private assistance, awards, medals, and even scholarships for artists! Truth be told, Emperor Pedro II was a visionary, as he understood, two centuries ago, that photography was an artistic expression and an important historical record. So much so that he even hired the renowned German photographer, Revert Henrique Klumb, to be Princess Isabel's photography teacher.
Furthermore, the emperor, who was fascinated by traveling the world and visiting historical regions, never did so without documenting the event, whether he himself was the photographer or someone hired to accompany him on his travels. These expeditions yielded hundreds of photographs, not only of the imperial majesty but also of the places he traveled to. It is worth remembering that photography, in those times, was not as popular as it is today, which is why these early records of historical sites are now a source of study for historians and archaeologists worldwide.
The result of Dom Pedro II's passion for photography was the largest collection of early Brazilian photography. A collection of over 25,000 photos that Dom Pedro II donated to the National Library upon his exile from Brazil in 1889, when the republic was proclaimed. The cultural heritage he amassed, however, remains a national treasure. One of humanity's most famous phrases, "I am the State," comes from the French monarch Louis XIV. However, Dom Pedro II uttered his own version of this grand slogan: "I am science."
An unusual fact: three of the main figures of the royal family are present in this letter in French from 1877: Princess Isabel, Dom Pedro II, and the Count d'Eu, who is writing to an unknown recipient, a Monsieur, perhaps a researcher?
