Eisen und Stahl is an important work in the history of modern photography. It exemplifies Renger-Patzsch's New Objectivity approach and attempts to redefine how industry and technology could be photographed. It was published, in part, to persuade a sceptical public that all was well with the ailing German economy prior to the fall of the Weimar government.

First edition, presentation copy inscribed in black ink on front free endpaper; lightly foxed plain endpapers, silver paper-covered boards, blue cloth spine with titles stamped in white, upper side stamped in black, rubbing to sides and spine lettering, without the rare dust-jacket, bookseller's ticket to front pastedown, in a custom grey cloth drop spine box; [96]pp.

Regards sur en siècle de photographie à travers le livre 40; The Photobook: A History I, p125; The Open Book: A history of the photographic book from 1878 to the present pp102-103; Auer Collection p175.