Open full image Pin

Roundel, St. John, by della Robbia, Palace of Necessidades

Charles Thurston Thompson

1866

photographic

From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum

Impressionism Realism Late 19th Century

Dominant colour

Roundel, St. John, by della Robbia, Palace of Necessidades is a 1866 photographic by Charles Thurston Thompson, a Impressionism work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.

Who painted this?: Charles Thurston Thompson
When & what style?: 1866 · Impressionism
Where can I see it?: Victoria and Albert Museum

About this work

This is a 1866 photo by Charles Thurston Thompson. It shows a roundel of St. John from the Palace of Necessidades. The shot was part of a campaign to document royal art for the South Kensington Museum. Cole started the first museum photo team. He saw photos as tools for learning. This trip to Iberia aimed to fill the museum’s growing image archive. Look up the Victoria and Albert Museum next.

The story of this work

Overview

A sepia-toned photograph mounted on card depicts a sculptural roundel featuring St. John, set within an ornate medallion. The image is one of seventy in an album, each photograph accompanied by a printed label. The photograph was produced during Charles Thurston Thompson’s 1866 Iberian campaign, documenting objects from Lisbon’s royal collections. The presentation reflects the period’s documentary approach to museum photography.

Read the full account in the museum source.