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Jewish Woman in Algeria
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
It is possible that this photograph was intended as an ethnographic study, but it conveys the sitter’s individuality, beauty, and dignity in a way that we associate with portraits. Muslim Arabs and Berbers, who comprised the majority of people living in Algeria, would most likely not have let their women be photographed without a veil covering the face.
Cleveland Museum of Art’s own descriptionCredit lineJewish Woman in Algeria, c. 1875. Attributed to Jean Geiser (Swiss, 1848–1923, active in Algeria). Albumen print from glass negative; image: 20.3 x 15.7 cm (8 x 6 3/16 in.); mounted: 44.7 x 30.6 cm (17 5/8 x 12 1/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Jo Hershey Selden Fund, 2024.7
