Jérusalem, Chemin de Naplouse

Art Historical Context

In 1854, French photographer Auguste Salzmann capturedJérusalem, Che de Naplouse*, a serene salted paper print depicting the winding Nablus Road leading toward Jerusalem's ancient walls. Framed by sturdy trees and distant hills, this landscape evokes the timeless allure of the Holy Land during the mid-19th century, a period when Western interest in biblical archaeology surged amid Ottoman rule. Salzmann, a pioneering figure in early photography, journeyed to Jerusalem to document its sacred sites, producing one of the first comprehensive photographic surveys of the city. Printed at the renowned Imprimerie photographique de Blanquart-Évrard in Lille, the image exemplifies the calotype process—using a paper negative to create a salted paper positive. This technique yielded soft, luminous tones and subtle details, ideal for conveying the textured stone and shadowed paths of the Middle Eastern terrain. At 23.1 x 33 cm, the print's intimate scale invites close contemplation, highlighting photography's emerging power to preserve distant vistas with unprecedented fidelity. Salzmann's work holds enduring cultural importance, bridging art, history, and exploration. Part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Gilman Collection, it offers visitors a window into a vanishing world, where every tree and bend in the road whispers stories of pilgrims and prophets.

About the Artist

Auguste Salzmann|Imprimerie photographique de Blanquart-Évrard, à Lille · 1824–1872

Born 15 april 1824. Salzmann travelled to Palestine in 1850 to 1851 as a draughtsman for a French expedition to the East. Salzmann returned to Paris, France in 1851 and learned photography which he used as an aid to his archaeological research. In 1853 Salzmann was commissioned by the Ministry of Public Instruction to visit Egypt, Syria, Palestine, and the islands of the Archipelago to photograph ...