Delphin, Ice Floe Of The Loire, Saumur C. 1880 Albumen Photograph

Vintage albumen print signed. Ice floe of the Loire, Saumur. Photograph taken in Saumur (Maine-et-Loire) and dated 1879-1880 on the support at the bottom center. This is an astonishing image showing the Loire completely frozen. "The exceptionally low temperatures of the winter of 1879-1880 (-28°C in Orléans) caused the Loire to jam with a thick layer of ice. A sudden thaw caused the waters to rise and the ice floe to break up into enormous blocks, which followed the current at high speed and hit the bridge piers. " Archives des Saumurois n.201Under the name of Delphin, Christophe Delphin Comergnac (1839-1883) was a photographer in Saumur (Maine-et-Loire) then in Rochefort (Charente-Maritime). At his death, it was his wife Eleontine who ran the Delphin house, very famous in Rochefort and frequented in particular by Louis Marie Julien Viaud, better known under the name of Pierre Loti. Image format 18 x 24 cm under 40 x 50 cm mat link on the site https://www.lavalisearlesienne.com/product-page/delphin-banquise-de-la-loire-saumur-c-1880