Tickets
English
DonateMembershipTickets

In the Valley of the Mole

1855
Not on view
One of the first English photographers to earn a living from the medium, Robert Howlett is known primarily for his photographs of the steamship, The Great Eastern, commissioned by the London Times in 1857. Earlier in his career, however, he was an artist-amateur who photographed rustic cottages and picturesque landscapes, such as this one, for his own aesthetic pleasure. In this photograph he resolved the relationship of cart and river so perfectly that the balance seems inevitable. Like Constable's Hay Wain (1821), the photograph addresses the temporality of man's industry within nature's continuity and confirms the peaceable equation established between them in Romantic art.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: In the Valley of the Mole
  • Artist: Robert Howlett (British, 1831–1858)
  • Date: 1855
  • Medium: Albumen silver print from glass negative
  • Dimensions: Image: 20.4 x 25.5 cm (8 1/16 x 10 1/16 in.)
    Mount: 30.5 x 43.7 cm (12 x 17 3/16 in.)
  • Classification: Photographs
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Harrison D. Horblit and Harriette and Noel Levine Gifts and David Hunter McAlpin Fund, 1988
  • Object Number: 1988.1033
  • Curatorial Department: Photographs

More Artwork

More Artwork
[Aphrodita Under Construction], Robert Howlett British, Albumen silver print from glass negative
[Aphrodita Under Construction]
Robert Howlett
ca. 1857
On the Wharfe, Bolton Abbey, William Callow British, Watercolor
On the Wharfe, Bolton Abbey
William Callow
September 30, 1858
[The Great Wave, Sète], Gustave Le Gray French, Albumen silver print from glass negative
[The Great Wave, Sète]
Gustave Le Gray
1857
[Men at Work Beside the Launching Chains of the "Great Eastern"], Robert Howlett British, Albumen silver print from glass negative
[Men at Work Beside the Launching Chains of the "Great Eastern"]
Robert Howlett
November 18, 1857
Stroh Violin, George Evans & Co. English, Mahogany and aluminum, British
Stroh Violin
George Evans & Co.
first quarter 20th century

Related Content

Publications

Books, guides, and catalogues published by The Met.

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please contact us using the form below. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.

Send feedback

Content Notice

The Metropolitan Museum of Art presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world, and our online collection reflects ongoing work conducted over the course of our more than 150-year history. You may encounter objects or images that may be inappropriate for some viewers or information that may be outdated.