Dark5 | 5 Oldest and Most Haunting Photos Ever Taken @dark5tv | Uploaded 3 years ago | Updated 1 day ago
For many years, scholars believed this 1848 photo taken in Cincinnati was the first-ever photograph of a human, showing two ghostly figures retrieving water from the Ohio River during a deadly Black Cholera epidemic that claimed between 5 to 10% of the city’s population. Shortly after the photo was published online, however, an anonymous user identified a much older Louis Daguerre photo that disputed this theory...
The anonymous user found a photo taken in Paris, France, in 1839 that shows a recognizable human form at the bottom-left corner. It appears as if the gentleman was having his boots shined.
The place is Boulevard du Temple, which seems eerily empty. The location was a busy center of activities, with many shops and cafés. It was later nicknamed Boulevard du Crime due to the dramatic plays showing in theaters nearby.
Photo exposure took seven minutes, so while the streets appear empty, traffic moved too quickly to register. The gentleman, however, held his position long enough for the camera to capture his silhouette. And like every Daguerreotype, the picture is inverted.
Five years after the photo was taken, Paris experienced several renovations under the orders of Napoleon III. Parks and open spaces replaced the narrow and dark medieval streets, making this photograph an invaluable memory from 19th century Paris.
Even though the only visible figure is the gentleman in the lower left, the shoeshine boy can also be vaguely discerned. Moreover, a closer inspection seems to reveal traces of other characters, such as two women near a pram right by the gentleman, and a child gazing through a window in the front building.
Unfortunately, the original photographic plate was only 6.5 by 8.5 inches, making it challenging to recognize more details. Still, the Paris photo seems to be the first-ever sighting of a human captured in the medium...
For many years, scholars believed this 1848 photo taken in Cincinnati was the first-ever photograph of a human, showing two ghostly figures retrieving water from the Ohio River during a deadly Black Cholera epidemic that claimed between 5 to 10% of the city’s population. Shortly after the photo was published online, however, an anonymous user identified a much older Louis Daguerre photo that disputed this theory...
The anonymous user found a photo taken in Paris, France, in 1839 that shows a recognizable human form at the bottom-left corner. It appears as if the gentleman was having his boots shined.
The place is Boulevard du Temple, which seems eerily empty. The location was a busy center of activities, with many shops and cafés. It was later nicknamed Boulevard du Crime due to the dramatic plays showing in theaters nearby.
Photo exposure took seven minutes, so while the streets appear empty, traffic moved too quickly to register. The gentleman, however, held his position long enough for the camera to capture his silhouette. And like every Daguerreotype, the picture is inverted.
Five years after the photo was taken, Paris experienced several renovations under the orders of Napoleon III. Parks and open spaces replaced the narrow and dark medieval streets, making this photograph an invaluable memory from 19th century Paris.
Even though the only visible figure is the gentleman in the lower left, the shoeshine boy can also be vaguely discerned. Moreover, a closer inspection seems to reveal traces of other characters, such as two women near a pram right by the gentleman, and a child gazing through a window in the front building.
Unfortunately, the original photographic plate was only 6.5 by 8.5 inches, making it challenging to recognize more details. Still, the Paris photo seems to be the first-ever sighting of a human captured in the medium...
