The first Bridge and Rajah's Palace
Photograph
1864 (photographed)
1864 (photographed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
In 1863 Samuel Bourne (1834-1912) arrived in India. He had left his job as a Nottingham bank clerk in order to develop his new career as a photographer. Bourne undertook three treks to Kashmir and the western Himalayas in 1863, 1864 and 1866, during which he photographed his surroundings extensively.
He began his second trip to India, during which this photograph was taken, in March 1864. It was to be a nine-month expedition through the Kashmir region. Throughout his travels he wrote about his first impressions of the places he visited and these writings were published in the British Journal of Photography. Of his first impressions of the Raja's palace he noted: “Between the first and second bridges stretches the Raja’s palace, consisting of a long line of low brick and mud buildings rising from the water’s edge. Its appearance is anything but palatial, and strikes one with no ideas of magnificence.” Bourne, S, Narrative of a Photographic Trip to Kashmir (Cashmere) and the Adjacent Districts, The British Journal of Photography, 4 January 1867, p.4
Towards the end of the 1860s, Bourne established a partnership with fellow photographer and Englishman Charles Shepherd (fl.1858-1878) and in the space of a few years Bourne & Shepherd became the pre-eminent photographic firm in India. By the end of 1870 they had three branches, in Simla, Calcutta and Bombay.
Samuel Bourne’s ability to combine technical skill and artistic vision has led to him being recognised today as one of the most outstanding photographers working in India in the nineteenth century.
He began his second trip to India, during which this photograph was taken, in March 1864. It was to be a nine-month expedition through the Kashmir region. Throughout his travels he wrote about his first impressions of the places he visited and these writings were published in the British Journal of Photography. Of his first impressions of the Raja's palace he noted: “Between the first and second bridges stretches the Raja’s palace, consisting of a long line of low brick and mud buildings rising from the water’s edge. Its appearance is anything but palatial, and strikes one with no ideas of magnificence.” Bourne, S, Narrative of a Photographic Trip to Kashmir (Cashmere) and the Adjacent Districts, The British Journal of Photography, 4 January 1867, p.4
Towards the end of the 1860s, Bourne established a partnership with fellow photographer and Englishman Charles Shepherd (fl.1858-1878) and in the space of a few years Bourne & Shepherd became the pre-eminent photographic firm in India. By the end of 1870 they had three branches, in Simla, Calcutta and Bombay.
Samuel Bourne’s ability to combine technical skill and artistic vision has led to him being recognised today as one of the most outstanding photographers working in India in the nineteenth century.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Titles |
|
| Materials and techniques | Albumen print from wet collodion negative |
| Brief description | Photograph, 'The first Bridge and Rajah's Palace', albumen print, Samuel Bourne, India, 1860s |
| Physical description | The photograph shows a view of a bridge across the river with the Raja's Palace in the distance and boats and figures by the bank in the foreground |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions | Signature and negative number in bottom left hand corner |
| Object history | This photograph was initially part of the photographic collection held in the National Art Library. The markings on the mount are an indication of the history of the object, its movement through the museum and the way it is categorised. The mount is white. Bottom Left: some handwritten text. |
| Production | The negative was made in 1864. This print was made before March 1867. |
| Place depicted | |
| Summary | In 1863 Samuel Bourne (1834-1912) arrived in India. He had left his job as a Nottingham bank clerk in order to develop his new career as a photographer. Bourne undertook three treks to Kashmir and the western Himalayas in 1863, 1864 and 1866, during which he photographed his surroundings extensively. He began his second trip to India, during which this photograph was taken, in March 1864. It was to be a nine-month expedition through the Kashmir region. Throughout his travels he wrote about his first impressions of the places he visited and these writings were published in the British Journal of Photography. Of his first impressions of the Raja's palace he noted: “Between the first and second bridges stretches the Raja’s palace, consisting of a long line of low brick and mud buildings rising from the water’s edge. Its appearance is anything but palatial, and strikes one with no ideas of magnificence.” Bourne, S, Narrative of a Photographic Trip to Kashmir (Cashmere) and the Adjacent Districts, The British Journal of Photography, 4 January 1867, p.4 Towards the end of the 1860s, Bourne established a partnership with fellow photographer and Englishman Charles Shepherd (fl.1858-1878) and in the space of a few years Bourne & Shepherd became the pre-eminent photographic firm in India. By the end of 1870 they had three branches, in Simla, Calcutta and Bombay. Samuel Bourne’s ability to combine technical skill and artistic vision has led to him being recognised today as one of the most outstanding photographers working in India in the nineteenth century. |
| Other number | 821.5 - Negative number |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 52992 |
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| Record created | September 9, 2016 |
| Record URL |
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