Photography as exhibited in the Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, 1851

The 1851 Great Exhibition of the Works of All Nations was the first world’s fair and the first time that photographs from around the world were exhibited together. To accompany the exhibition, the Royal Commissioners created a set of volumes that included an Official Catalogue and Reports by the Juries. These contain information explaining how the Exhibition was organized, descriptions of content, and annotations offered by experts in various fields. This thesis addresses the photographic information contained in the presentation set of these volumes held at George Eastman House’s Richard and Ronay Menschel Library. It includes a summary of the information pertaining to photography contained within these books, formatted into a concise and easily accessible reference source. In addition, it offers an analysis of some of this information. The topics include the formation of content, language and classification, photographic processes, and the controversy regarding the awarding of prize medals.