Snapshots of the Past

Library [of Congress, main reading room, Washington, D.C.] – Antique Print

Library [of Congress, main reading room, Washington, D.C.], [between 1918 and 1920] — historic photograph
Library [of Congress, main reading room, Washington, D.C.], [between 1918 and 1920]. Historic photograph from the Library of Congress collection.

(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

Library [of Congress, main reading room, Washington, D.C.] comes to life in this historic photograph, reproduced from the original with every detail intact. An authentic image from the Library of Congress, it carries the weight of the real historical record.

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Library [of Congress, main reading room, Washington, D.C.]

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This glass negative records the main reading room of the Library of Congress in the Thomas Jefferson Building in Washington, D.C., with its leaded and stained glass windows as the notable feature. The building opened in 1897, and its interiors were meant to showcase American art and craftsmanship as much as books. The National Photo Company, a commercial studio that documented Washington's federal buildings and public life in the early twentieth century, made the image between about 1918 and 1920. Its glass plate format preserves fine detail in the window work, though the surface shows the streaks and blemishes typical of aging emulsion.

Created / published[between 1918 and 1920]
Medium1 negative : glass ; 4 x 5 in. or smaller
GenreGlass negatives.
NotesTitle from unverified data provided by the National Photo Company on the negatives or negative sleeves. Date from negatives in same range. Gift; Herbert A. French; 1947. This glass negative might show streaks and other blemishes resulting from a natural deterioration in the original coatings. Temp. note: Batch one.
SubjectsLibrary of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building (Washington, D.C.) Libraries. Leaded glass windows. Stained glass. United States--District of Columbia--Washington (D.C.)
SourceLibrary of Congress, National Photo Company Collection
Original scan5,247 × 4,279 px · prints to 17 × 14 in at 300 dpi
ReferenceAMZ-SOTP-NPC-229470

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