Naturaliste, rue de l'école de médicine

Who were the customers for such an establishment, with its large display windows revealing a most curious product?

As unlikely as an encounter with this gruesome storefront seems, Eugène Atget chose to photograph it so as to emphasize its accessibility to the passerby on the street; the sidewalk, curb, and brick road take up fully one-third of the frame. The distance from the window also allows for a bit of mystery concerning the creatures or parts being preserved within the jars. Like many of the figures captured in Atget's photographs, the skeleton of the ape appears to be eyeing the photographer cautiously and curiously as Atget goes about recording him.