In the XIX century, Madrid was very different from today: when looking at the pictures taken in those days, we see more about its past. What was the Royal Palace like more than a century ago? What kind of atmosphere was experienced in Plaza de Oriente? What could we see in a normal day in Puerta del Sol?

The magic power of photography is able to capture the moment and freeze it forever so that we can see it many years after. Due to this, we have realized how much our lifestyle and customs have changed. Therefore, thanks to photography we know how Madrileños lived 125 years ago because, to a certain extent, photography allows us to travel back in time.

Previously, we took a trip to the 50´s with the great photographer Cas Oorthuys. In that article, we pointed out that watching those photographs was a return to 1955 as well as an awareness of how Madrileños lived in those days. Today, we go back even more as we will travel to the end of the XIX century thanks to Hauser and Menet, a printing shop formed by two great photographers: Oscar Hauser and Adolfo Menet Kurstiner.

HAUSER AND MENET, THE CHONICLER PRINTING SHOP OF THE TIME

Hauser and Menet was a Spanish printing shop created in Madrid in 1890 by the Swiss photographers Oscar Hauser and Adolfo Menet Kurstiner. It was first installed in Calle Desengaño, located in the very centre of Madrid, and was focused on taking pictures of different Spanish cities.

These pictures were reproduced in postcards and publications of the time. To get an idea of the amount of work carried out in the printing shop, it suffices to say that in the days of its greatest splendour (the beginning of the XX century) it produced up to half a million postcards each month. Thanks to the Biblioteca Nacional, we can share with you, in this blog, part of a graphic treasure.

The pictures shown are dated between 1890 and 1892 and we can see different scenes that took place in those days in Madrid. Some are very picturesque, like the ones of some Madrileños spending the day in Parque de San Isidro or strolling along Calle Alcalá and Plaza de Cibeles.

THE END OF A MYTHICAL PRINTING SHOP

In 1996, not very long ago, Hauser and Menet stopped existing. Many years before, in 1919, Oscar Hauser had to go back to Switzerland due to health reasons and a few months later he passed away. Adolfo Menet became the sole director until his death in 1927.

Menet´s heirs continued with the society until 1979 when the printing shop was declared in suspension of payments. Then, a feasibility plan saved it from disappearing. Nevertheless, 27 years later the printing shop closed down. Among other clients, Hauser and Menet worked with Compañía de Ferrocarriles de Madrid to Zaragoza and Alicante. Also, with the magazines Triunfo, Hola and Interview.

Pictures: Biblioteca Nacional