Lighthouse under Construction in Harbor, Algeria

John B. Greene was born in France to American parents who had recently moved from Boston. Greene had a deep interest in both archaeology and photography. He made several trips to the Middle East between 1852 and 1856 to photograph and to conduct excavations. A master of the calotype (or paper-negative) technique, Greene made photographs-such as this astonishing print-that are, by turns, bold, dynamic and minimal. This genius of photography died in 1856 at the age of only twenty-four.