Front / Recto

  • Title Untitled (Eiffel Tower)
  • Negative Date 1927–28
  • Print Date 1927–39
  • Medium Gelatin silver print
  • Dimensions Image 9 × 6 1/4" (22.9 × 15.9 cm)
    Sheet 9 5/16 × 6 11/16" (23.7 × 17 cm)
  • Place Taken Paris
  • Credit Line Thomas Walther Collection. Gift of Thomas Walther
  • MoMA Accession Number 1750.2001
  • Copyright © Estate Germaine Krull, Museum Folkwang, Essen

Back / Verso

  • Mount Type No mount
  • Marks and Inscriptions

    Inscribed in pencil on sheet verso, top right: 2 [underlined, oriented upside down with respect to image]. Inscribed in pencil across entire sheet verso: Palais de la Femme/Paris–vies, bouquin etc./Aux bonheur des Dames/Tissenaud, etoffes, bijoux etc/Rotterdam, Londres, marché/Londres, docks/Cafés arabes/Paris rues/Paris la nuit/Elections (nuit des)/Le Pacte de Paris/Paris publicité/Fleurs/Nus [1].

    [1] "Palais de la Femme/Parislives, book, etc./Aux bonheur des Dames [store]/Tissenaud, fabrics, jewelry etc./Rotterdam, London, market/London, docks/Arab coffee shops/Paris streets/Paris by night/Election (night)/Pact of Paris/Paris advertisement/Flowers/Nudes."
  • Provenance The artist. Henry Feldstein, Forest Hills, N.Y., by 1989 [1]; purchased by Thomas Walther, April 29, 1990 [2]; given to The Museum of Modern Art, New York, 2001.
    [1] MacGill/Walther 2001(4), p. 8.
    [2] Ibid.; and MacGill/Walther 2000(2), p. 21.

Surface

  • Surface Sheen Semireflective
  • Techniques Retouching (additive)
    Copy print
  • PTM
    View of the recto of the artwork made using reflectance transformation imaging (RTI) software, which exaggerates subtle surface details and renders the features of the artwork plainly visible. Department of Conservation, MoMA
  • Micro-raking
    Raking-light close-up image, as shot. Area of detail is 6.7 x 6.7 mm. Department of Conservation, MoMA
    Raking-light close-up image, processed. Processing included removal of color, equalization of the histogram, and sharpening, all designed to enhance visual comparison. Department of Conservation, MoMA

Paper Material

  • Format Metric
  • Weight Double weight
  • Thickness (mm) 0.31
  • UV Fluorescence Recto negative
    Verso negative
  • Fiber Analysis Softwood bleached sulfite 92%
    Hardwood bleached sulfite 8%
  • Material Techniques Developing-out paper
  • XRF

    This work was determined to be a gelatin silver print via X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry.

    The following elements have been positively identified in the work, through XRF readings taken from its recto and verso (or from the mount, where the verso was not accessible):

    • Recto: P, S, Ca, Zn, Br, Sr, Ag, Ba
    • Verso: Al, Si, S, K, Ca, Fe, Zn, Br, Sr, Ba

    The graphs below show XRF spectra for three areas on the print: two of the recto—from areas of maximum and minimum image density (Dmax and Dmin)—and one of the verso or mount. The background spectrum represents the contribution of the XRF instrument itself. The first graph shows elements identified through the presence of their characteristic peaks in the lower energy range (0 to 8 keV). The second graph shows elements identified through the presence of their characteristic peaks in the higher energy range (8 to 40 keV).

    Areas examined: Recto (Dmax: black; Dmin: green), Verso or Mount (blue), Background (red)
    Elements identified: Al, Si, P, S, K, Ca, Ag, Ba
    Areas examined: Recto (Dmax: black; Dmin: green), Verso or Mount (blue), Background (red)
    Elements identified: Fe, Zn, Br, Sr, Ag

In Context

Related Images

Spread from Germaine Krull. Métal (Metal). Paris: Librairie des arts décoratifs, 1928. The Museum of Modern Art Library, New York. © Estate Germaine Krull, Museum Folkwang, Essen
Germaine Krull. Photographs reproduced in Florent Fels. “Dans toute sa force” (In full force). Vu, no. 11 (May 31, 1928). Courtesy International Center of Photography. © Estate Germaine Krull, Museum Folkwang, Essen

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