Fenton's asistant, Marcus Sparling, on the photographic van, Crimea, c 1855.

One of a set of twenty-four early documentary photographs of the Crimean War taken by Roger Fenton (1819-1869). Fenton was commisioned (with royal sanction) by the publisher Thomas Agnew to photograph the Crimean War (1853-1856). This was the first extensive documentation of a war, producing 300-400 images. Wood engravings of his images were published in 'The Illustrated London News'.