Portraits of a Young Man from North Africa, Antonio Cavilla, c. 1884

albumen print, h 201mm × w 153mm More details

In the 19th century there was a demand for portraits of peoples of the regions travellers visited. Anthropologists and ethnographers used them for study purposes. The photograph at the left is unusual in that the sitter looks at us with such a penetrating gaze. Perhaps the photographer hung these portraits in his shop window in Algiers or Rabat to attract potential customers.