Albumin print, Hippolyte Arnoux, un Pacha dans son harem, Port Said, circa 1880

This historical photograph shows an exceptionally rare, stately, and elaborately staged close-up studio view with the original title "Un Pacha dans son harem", taken as an original albumin print mounted on cardboard. The albumin process used was the dominant photochemical technique of that era, in which egg white was used to bind the light-sensitive silver salts to the paper, giving the photographs their characteristic warm sepia tone, a soft glossy surface, and high detail sharpness.

Masterfully composed in landscape format, the motif documents an Ottoman Pasha, a man of high social rank, magnificently dressed in a caftan, kushak, and turban, in the midst of three ladies of his harem as well as a young servant attentively holding a tray ready. The precious clothing shown reflects the Ottoman-Egyptian elite fashion of the late 19th century, which was heavily characterized by traditional cuts, rich heavy fabrics, and fine patterns, with the ladies posing in shintiyan harem pants, noble yelek vests, and translucent veils. Such elaborate studio photographs were specifically staged by European photographers in that era for a fascinated Western audience in order to make the mysterious world of the Orient visually tangible.

The authorship is undisputedly attributed to the famous French photographer Hippolyte Arnoux due to the original white caption within the photo negative, who was primarily known for his documentation of the Suez Canal and his exclusive portrait studies in Port Said. This spectacular cultural-historical document originated around the year 1880. The antique collector's item features the photograph dimensions of 27,5 x 21 cm mounted on a 31 x 24,5 cm original cardboard backing and is in good age-appropriate condition with a beautiful, even, slight toning. It shows unevenly trimmed edges of the photograph, slight foxing due to storage on the back of the cardboard, a small tear on the upper left margin, as well as a larger tear in the bottom left area of the image, which, however, is stably and firmly attached to the backing cardboard. The back features a dealer sticker with a barcode and two small old cropped photographs.