- Title: FRANCE: WORLD'S OLDEST PHOTOGRAPH IS SOLD AT AUCTION IN PARIS FOR 450,000 EUROS
- Date: 20th March 2002
- Summary: (U4) PARIS, FRANCE (MARCH 21, 2002) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1. LAS: EXTERIOR SOTHEBY GALLERY 0.05 2. SCU: SIGN ANNOUNCING AUCTION 0.15 3. WIDE AUCTION IN PROGRESS 0.25 4. SV: MAN LOOKING AT OLDEST PHOTOGRAPH IN CATALOGUE 0.30 5. CLOSEUP PHOTO IN CATALOGUE 0.35 6. SLV: PRICE FOR PHOTO SET AT 450,000 EUROS 0.40 7. SCU: MAN HOLDING PHOTO TO AUDIENCE 0.43 8. SV: PHOTO DECLARED SOLD FOR 450,000 EUROS 0.53 (U4) PARIS, FRANCE (MARCH 20, 2002) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 9. WS: PHOTOS EXHIBITED AT SOTHEBY 0.57 10. SV: PEOPLE LOOKING AT PHOTOS 1.02 11. CLOSEUP PHOTO OF MAN STANDING NEXT TO NOTRE DAME GARGOYLE (2 SHOTS) 1.08 12. SV: MAN LOOKING AT PHOTOS 1.14 13. CLOSEUP PHOTO 1.20 14. WIDE OF WOMAN LOOKING AT OLDEST PHOTO IN THE WORLD 1.23 15. CLOSEUP OLDEST PHOTO 1.29 16. SCU: MAN LOOKING AT PHOTOS 1.32 17. VARIOUS OTHER PHOTOS (2 SHOTS) 1.40 18. VARIOUS PEOPLE LOOKING AT PHOTOS 1.48 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 4th April 2002 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: PARIS, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Reuters ID: LVADOZ3NZJ8EOU3M1XWYWSSAVY5
- Story Text: An impressive photography collection, including the
world's oldest photo, has gone on auction in Paris. The oldest
picture was sold to a French buyer the Bibliotheque Nationale
- French National Library - for 450,000 euros.
In the summer of 1825, a French chemist succeeded in
using the power of light to make a plate from which an image
could be printed. Joseph Niepce's discovery resulted in the
first photographic image in the world, a grainy image sold at
a Sotheby's auction today.
After half a century lying unremarked in a private
collection, the print's sale is forcing historians to revise
the birth of photography. Until now it had been assumed that
Niepce's first successful attempt happened a year later. Andre
Jammes the seemingly unassuming reproduction of a 17th century
Dutch print some years ago, together with an extensive series
of autograph manuscript letters by Niepce and his son Isidore.
The correspondence that accompanied the print gave a full,
detailed account, step-by-step, of the processes by which
Niepce eventually achieved his momentous discovery.
The auction at Sotheby's magnificent galleries in Paris on
Thursday (March 21) is the largest ever dispersal of
photographs from a single collection, with the material
presented in two fully illustrated catalogues. The first
catalogue comprises rare and important 19th century and early
20th century photographs. The second catalogue is devoted
specifically to the archive of one photographer, Charles Negre
(1820-1880), widely recognized as a pre-eminent early
practitioner, one of the most distinguished figures among the
ranks of French "primitive" photographers.
- Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None