Where does this come from, and can I check it?

Nicephore Niepce fixed the view from his window at Le Gras in 1826. The figure is taken from Harry Ransom Center, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

Is this really a records & extremes fact?

Yes. It sits on the Records & Extremes shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.

What else can I read about it?

The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.

Mondo Knows Facts

The first surviving photograph needed hours of exposure

Nicephore Niepce fixed the view from his window at Le Gras in 1826 Niepce coated a pewter plate with bitumen of Judea, which hardens where light strikes it, and exposed it in a camera obscura for around 8 hours. The resulting image shows the courtyard and rooftops of his estate at Le Gras in France. Because the sun moved during the exposure, buildings appear lit from both sides, and the plate is now held at the University of Texas. It sits in Mondo's records & extremes collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

Harry Ransom Center

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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Tags: photography, france, invention

The first surviving photograph needed hours of exposure: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: Nicephore Niepce fixed the view from his window at Le Gras in 1826. The figure is taken from Harry Ransom Center, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a records & extremes fact?: Yes. It sits on the Records & Extremes shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.