[CONSTANTINOPLE] Place de l'Hippodrome No. 18 [i.e., Hippodrome Square].

Original albumen photograph mounted on card board. 29x23 cm. In French. Rare early albumen photograph capturing the Obelisk of Theodosius, the Serpent Column and the Walled Obelisk (also known as the Masonry Obelisk) in 19th-century Constantinople. The Obelisk of Theodosius, originally erected by Pharaoh Thutmose III (1479-1425 BC) during Egypt's 18th dynasty, was later transported and re-erected in the Hippodrome of Constantinople by Emperor Theodosius I in the 4th century AD. The Serpent Column also known as the Serpentine Column, Plataean Tripod or Delphi Tripod, is an ancient bronze column at the Hippodrome. It is part of an ancient Greek sacrificial tripod, originally in Delphi and relocated to Constantinople by Constantine the Great in 324. It was built to commemorate the Greeks who fought and defeated the Persian Empire at the Battle of Plataea (479 BC). The serpent heads of the 8-metre (26 ft) high column remained intact until the end of the 17th century (one is on display at the nearby Istanbul Archaeology Museums). The Walled Obelisk, a Roman monument, stands nearby in what was once the Hippodrome of Constantinople, now Sultanahmet Square in Istanbul. The building seen behind the two obelisks is the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum, whose construction began in the late 19th century and was completed in 1913. This photograph was taken by Swedish photographer Guillaume Berggren. His journey into photography began in Berlin, where he received his first lessons from a female photographer. After her passing, he inherited her camera and continued traveling through Dresden, Ljubljana, Bucharest, and Odessa before arriving in Istanbul in 1866. Soon after, he adopted a French first name and established a photography studio called "Lilla Sverige" (Little Sweden) on Istiklal Avenue. Berggren's work primarily captured everyday life in the Ottoman capital, though he also documented significant historical events, such as the Russo-Turkish War and the inauguration of the Orient Express. His clientele included both locals and tourists, the latter being a major source of income. In 1883, he briefly returned to Sweden but soon came back to Istanbul with a young woman, Hilda Ullin, whom he introduced as his niece. What was initially intended as a visit turned into a lifelong stay. Hilda helped him run the studio and later managed his shop for several years after his passing, ensuring his photographic legacy endured.