The Great Exhibition, 1851: Medallion Portraits of the Royal Family by Wyon

Photograph of medallions in mezzo-rilievo depicting the first seven children of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Clockwise from top: Princess Victoria, Princess Alice, Princess Louise, Prince Arthur, Princess Helena, Prince Albert Edward and, in the centre, Prince Alfred.

This photograph is from Volume IV (RCIN 2800003) 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).