The Great Exhibition, 1851: Folding-doors Veneered with Malachite by Demidoff

Photograph of a pair of folding doors veneered in malachite. The doors are shown between two malachite vases on plinths. The vase on the left has a globular shape while the vase on the right evokes the shape of a calyx krater.

This photograph is from Volume III (RCIN 2800002) of ' Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, 1851: Reports by the Juries on the Subjects in the Thirty Classes into which the Exhibition was Divided'. The incredibly successful Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, commonly known as the Great Exhibition, ran from May to October 1851. At the exhibition's conclusion, over 100 copies of the four volume 'Reports by the Juries' were distributed to foreign governments and notable participants. The reports consist of the juries' comments and assessments of the works displayed in the exhibition. The idea and decision to illustrate the reports with photographs is attributed to Prince Albert (1819-61).