Interpreting the Visual Evidence
Displays of Imperial Culture: The Paris Exposition of 1889
The French colonies
were very visible during
the celebration of
the centenary of the
French Revolution in
1889. In that year, the French government
organized a "Universal Exposition"
in the capital that attracted over six million
visitors to a broad esplanade covered
with exhibitions of French industry
and culture, including the newly constructed
Eiffel Tower, a symbol of modern
French engineering.
At the base of the Eiffel Tower
(image A), a colonial pavilion placed
objects from France's overseas empire
on display, and a collection of temporary
architectural exhibits placed reproductions
of buildings from French colonies in
Asia and Africa as well as samples of architecture
from other parts of the world.
The photographs here show a reproduction
of a Cairo Street (image B); the
Pagoda of Angkor, modeled after the
Khmer temples of Angkor Wat in Cambodia,
a French protectorate (image C);
and examples of West African dwellings
(image D). The Cairo Street was the second
most popular tourist destination at
the fair, after the Eiffel Tower. It contained
twenty-five shops and restaurants,
and employed dozens of Egyptian
servers, shopkeepers, and artisans who
had been brought to Paris to add authenticity
to the exhibit. Other people
on display in the colonial pavilion included
Senegalese villagers and a Vietnamese
theater troupe.
Images
Questions for Analysis
| 1. fiogf49gjkf0d fiogf49gjkf0d What vision of history and social
progress is celebrated in this linkage
between France’s colonial holdings
and the industrial power on display in
the Eiffel Tower? |
|
| 2. fiogf49gjkf0d fiogf49gjkf0d What might account for the popularity
of the Cairo Street exhibit among
the public? |
|
| 3. fiogf49gjkf0d fiogf49gjkf0d Why was it so important for the
exposition to place people from European
colonies on display for a French
audience? |
|
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