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Carl Gustav Oehme (1817-1881)
Portrait of three Prussian ministers
1848
Daguerreotype, 1/4 plate
Bassenge Photography Auctions
19th - 21st Century Photography, 3 June 2015, Lot: 4028
LL/59739
Originally a mechanic, Oehme learned the daguerreotype technique from Daguerre himself during a stay in Paris in 1840 - 1842. As early as 1841 he publically displayed his daguerreotypes and in 1843 established a studio as a professional daguerreotypist in Berlin.
This small portrait is a rare and interesting historical document from 1848. It shows the liberal Prussian Prime Minister Rudolf von Auerswald (1795 - 1866), the Trade Minister Karl August Milde (1805 - 1861) and the Minister of the Interior Friedrich Kühlwetter (1809 - 1882). After the outbreak of the March Revolution in 1848, Auerswalde was named Oberpräsident in Königsberg of the Province of Prussia by Prime Minister Ludolf Camphausen. After Camphausen resigned, Auerswald became Prime Minister on June 25, as well as Foreign Minister. The image offered here was taken between June 25 and September 8, 1848, during Auerswald's term as Prime Minister and during one of the most turbulent times in German constitutional history. A constitution for the Kingdom of Prussia was proposed during Auerwald's term; its model was the liberal Belgian Constitution of 1831, which had strongly influenced the Rheinish liberalism. However, it was not accepted by the Prussian National Assembly, which created its own constitutional committee instead. Auerswald's ministry collapsed on September 8 when the National Assembly called for the government to demand the resignation of conservative members of the military. Auerswald was married to Countess Adele Dohna-Lauck.
Lit.: Bodo von Dewitz and Reinhard Matz (eds.). Silber und Salz. Zur Frühzeit der Photographie im deutschen Sprachraum 1839-1860. Cologne 1989, see p. 675.
W.J. Mommsen. 1848. Die ungewollte Revolution. Die revolutionäre Bewegung 1830 - 1849. Frankfurt 1998, p. 206.
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