Alexander Brodie - photographs of Sydney and the Blue Mountains, 1874-1875

PXA 777

fonds

1895-1905 prints of earlier 1874-1875 images

Graphic Materials, Photographs

152921

Photographs - 25 x 30 cm. or smaller - 11 silver gelatin POP photoprints

1-4. Panorama of Sydney from St Leonards.
5. Sydney Town Hall.
6. Darling Harbour from St. Phillip's Church [with view of Pyrmont Bridge].
7. The Gap looking south.
8. THe Gap looking north showing harbour to extreme left and entrance to Middle Harbour.
9. Coast Scenery between South Head and Ben Buckler, Bondi.
10. The Great Zig Zag [railway].
11. Govett's Leap.

These prints are toned print-out-paper prints made between 1895 and 1905 from the original negatives. Comparison with albumen prints made at the time of exposure (see PXA 758) shows cracking and scratches of the emulsion, additional labelling and a break to one of the wet plate negatives. Although these prints are dated 1883-1884 on the back, this is too late for the production of the original negatives. The fact that they are made from wet plate negatives would indicate a date prior to 1880, as the new dry plates achieved a rapid acceptance in the photographic community. The inscription on the back of the Town hall photograph notes the presence of the 'old market', indicating it was written after the construction of the Queen Victoria Building [1898].The date for the view of Pyrmont Bridge is given by the presence of the Angel of Knowledge, still visible on the eastern gable of the Great Hall of The University of Sydney, which was removed in 1874. Faintly visible in the panorama is the tower of the Town Hall, which was completed in 1875. The latest date (1875) is given by the images of the newly completed Town Hall and Zig Zag railway. Notice the builder's planks in the foreground of the Town Hall photograph.

Titled on reverse