Gezicht op de Strada Mercurio te Pompeï
1857 - 1875
Medium
albumen print
Dimensions
315; 420
About this artwork
collector's mark: ‘VOSMAER’
Art Historical Context
**Gezicht op de Strada Mercurio te Pompeï** (View of Mercury Street in Pompeii) is a captivating albumen print by Giorgio Sommer, a pioneering German-Italian photographer active in Naples during the mid-19th century. Captured between 1857 and 1875, this large-format image (315 × 420 mm) offers a vivid glimpse into the excavated ruins of Pompeii, an ancient Roman city frozen in time by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Sommer, renowned for his meticulous documentation of Italy's archaeological treasures, expertly framed the Strada Mercurio—a bustling ancient thoroughfare lined with shops...
About the Artist
Giorgio Sommer
Giorgio Sommer, born Georg Sommer on September 2, 1834, in Frankfurt am Main within the German Confederation, emerged as one of 19th-century Europe's most prolific photographers. After studying business in his hometown, where his family fortune was reportedly lost to his father's gambling, Sommer apprenticed as a photographer before launching his professional career in Switzerland, producing relie...