Bas-relief portion of a frieze of with trophies in terra cotta

The frieze fragment depicts a decorative arrangement of classical trophies, likely commemorating military victories or civic achievements. By rendering the three‑dimensional relief in two‑dimensional form, the photograph makes the sculptural details accessible to viewers who cannot encounter the original object in person.

Laffon employed the wet‑collodion process, the dominant photographic method of the 1860s, to produce a sharply rendered, high‑contrast image. The careful lighting emphasizes the surface texture of the terra‑cotta, allowing the relief’s shallow depths and ornamental patterns to be discerned with clarity.

The photograph entered the V&A’s collection in 1864 when the museum purchased 500 prints from Laffon’s series documenting objects from the Campana Collection at the Musée Napoléon III. The acquisition was mediated by the dealer Monsieur E. Cappe, reflecting the museum’s early commitment to building a visual archive for educational use.

At the time, the South Kensington Museum (later the V&A) was pioneering the systematic collection of photographs, recognizing their value for artists, students, and curators. Laffon’s work, alongside that of other female photographers such as Isabel Agnes Cowper, contributed to this expanding visual resource pool.