Alphons Stübel at the Portal of the Sun, Tiahuanaco

During the nineteenth century, photography became one of the most important means of visual documentation for the numerous scientific expeditions that then began exploring Peru. On the basis of its alleged objectivity, the photograph became a tool for the classification and understanding of the Peru’s vast territory. For instance, this image shows German geologist Alphons Stübel, who arrived in Peru in 1875, as part of an archaeological expedition. Although he began his work in the archaeological cemetery of Ancón, a beach resort on the outskirts of Lima, Stübel soon found himself travelling around a large part of Peru and even Bolivia. This photograph was taken next to the Portal of the Sun, during the team’s exploration of this Tiahuanaco archaeological site in the Altiplano.