'Pisa, the Baptistry and portion of the Cathedral from the East side of the grass...

Pisa, the Baptistry and portion of the Cathedral from the East side of the grass plot', 25 June 1841. Pisa, the Baptistry and portion of the Cathedral from the East side of the grass plot', 25 June 1841. Daguerreotype by Alexander John Ellis (1814-1890). One of a series of topographical and architectural views which are among the earliest known photographs of Italy. Ellis wanted to use them as the basis of a series of engravings in a proposed publication called 'Italy Daguerreotyped'. The daguerreotype process was one of two pioneering photographic processes announced in 1839. Each image is a direct positive produced on sensitised metal plates in a long and complex procedure. ©SSPL/National Media Museum