View looking back on the gate of the Fort from the ruined terrace behind
Photograph
December 1857-January 1858 (photographed), 1860 (published)
December 1857-January 1858 (photographed), 1860 (published)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
Linnaeus Tripe (1822–1902) documented much of south India as official photographer to the Madras government (1856–1860). Tripe set off on a tour from Bangalore on 14 December 1857. He travelled through the Salem district to Srirangam, Tiruchchirappalli, Madurai, then Pudukkottai, Thanjavur, and Tiruchchirappalli again and ended his tour in Madras on 30 April 1858.
This photograph is part of the album he produced of Ryacotta, or Royacottah, and the Salem district. This is the accompanying text published with the image in 1860:
‘The fortress of Ryacottah used to be guarded by a detachment of Sipahis [Hindu for soldier, meaning here an Indian soldier] from Bangalore though the manner in which they performed their duty was somewhat original and scarcely betokened much importance being attached to the Post. Mr Dykes C.S. in his Salem page 347 says.“Guard is kept from sunrise to sunset on the lone Rock that towers some thousand feet above the broken ground around its base; but with the twilight the heavy gates are closed and locked, winding path that leads from the battlement crowned precipice to their humble cottages below. The detachment of Sipahis however has now been withdrawn and their place supplied by a body of old pensioners.”’
This photograph is part of the album he produced of Ryacotta, or Royacottah, and the Salem district. This is the accompanying text published with the image in 1860:
‘The fortress of Ryacottah used to be guarded by a detachment of Sipahis [Hindu for soldier, meaning here an Indian soldier] from Bangalore though the manner in which they performed their duty was somewhat original and scarcely betokened much importance being attached to the Post. Mr Dykes C.S. in his Salem page 347 says.“Guard is kept from sunrise to sunset on the lone Rock that towers some thousand feet above the broken ground around its base; but with the twilight the heavy gates are closed and locked, winding path that leads from the battlement crowned precipice to their humble cottages below. The detachment of Sipahis however has now been withdrawn and their place supplied by a body of old pensioners.”’
Object details
Category | |
Object type | |
Title | View looking back on the gate of the Fort from the ruined terrace behind (assigned by artist) |
Materials and techniques | Albumen print from waxed paper (calotype) negative |
Brief description | Photograph, No. IV 'View looking back on the gate of the Fort from the ruined terrace behind', from the photograph album by Capt. Linnaeus Tripe, 'Photographic Views of Ryacotta'; South India, 1858 |
Physical description | This black and white photograph shows a wall and pathway along a cliff, with vegetation and mountains in the distance to the left. There is a large rock and small hut to the right of the image in shadow. |
Dimensions |
|
Production type | Limited edition |
Marks and inscriptions | 'photographer to government' (Tripe's blindstamp is on the lower centre of the mount.) |
Credit line | Given by Lady Denison |
Object history | This photograph was given by Lady Denison in 1889 during the keepership of Caspar Purdon Clarke, Keeper of the Indian Section of the V&A. It was written off in 1937, and rediscovered and re-evaluated in the 1990s. See Dewan p.374 for listings of other copies elsewhere. This photograph was published as plate IV of ten in the album Photographic Views of Ryacotta and other places in the Salem District 1858, by 'Captain L. Tripe, Government Photographer, Madras Presidency, With Descriptive Notes by J. A. C. Boswell', published in 1860. It was taken as part of Tripe's remit as the government photographer, which he himself defined broadly, as recording, ‘before they disappear’ buildings, sculptures and inscriptions…' including the picturesque. This was a model for an extensive survey, including tuition of others and experimentation in his own practice. He was funded by the Madras government, but intended selling additional copies of some prints so that his practice could be self-funding. The print was published with the accompanying text:‘The fortress of Ryacottah used to be guarded by a detachment of Sipahis [Hindu for soldier, meaning here an Indian soldier] from Bangalore though the manner in which they performed their duty was somewhat original and scarcely betokened much importance being attached to the Post. Mr Dykes C.S. in his Salem page 347 says. “Guard is kept from sunrise to sunset on the lone Rock that towers some thousand feet above the broken ground around its base; but with the twilight the heavy fates are closed and locked, winding path that leads from the battlement crowned precipice to their humble cottages below. The detachment of Sipahis however has now been withdrawn and their place supplied by a body of old pensioners.”’ Historical significance: Tripe's photographs of South India are an important body of work within Tripe's oeuvre, and are recognised as being some of the most aesthetically and technically competent images of India made in the 19th century. Tripe entered as total of 50 photographs from his 1857–8 tour of South India in the 1859 annual exhibition of the Madras Photographic Society. The jury dubbed his photographs ‘the best in the Exhibition’ but as Tripe could not be classed an amateur, he could not win the gold medal. Tripe declined the silver medal amicably, since he considered that as an official photographer he had an unfair advantage over the other entrants. Tripe’s photographs were valued for their informational value and their technical quality. The adjudicating committee stated that Tripe’s photographs ‘illustrate admirably the architecture of the Hindoo Temples and Places of Southern India, and in particular the Madura and Tanjore series comprise in this respect all that is most worthy of record in those cities.’ (See Dewan, p.16). Forty-six of Tripe’s 50 exhibited images were made from paper (calotype) negatives, which the committee didn't feel were as successful as dry collodion-on-glass negatives, however, declaring that ‘the superiority of definition given by Collodion [-on-glass] is very visible when placed side by side with them.’ It is thought that Tripe prefered paper to glass negatives due to paper being easier and safer to work with. |
Historical context | The southern districts tour and Madras presidency photographs, 1857–58 The Madras government appointed Tripe as photographer following the 1855 directive from the Court of Directors in London, who discouraged illustration in favour of ‘photography as a means by which representations may be obtained of scenes and buildings, with the advantages of perfect accuracy, small expenditure of time, and moderate cash’, and asked that photography be the main means of recording architecture and antiquities (Dewan, p.6). As official photographer to the Madras Government, Tripe set off from Bangalore on 14 December 1857 after delays due to waiting for modifications to his new English camera, and his recovery after falling from a horse. He ended his tour in Madras on 30 April 1858 after travelling via Srirangam, Tiruchchirappalli, Madurai, then Pudukkottai, Tanjore, and Tiruchchirappalli again (then called Seeringham, Trichinopoly, Madura, Poodoocottah and Tanjore). All of these areas had been forcefully taken under British rule in the previous one hundred years, but Tripe looked for scenes or subjects with architectural or antiquarian interest rather than political significance. He had wanted to ensure his images were practical too: before he had set out he had asked the chief engineer for guidance on what would be most useful from an engineering perspective, and incorporated this input into his work. |
Production | Edition number unknown. The album of which this photograph is part was one of probably 40 copies to have been produced. Attribution note: The V&A has another copy of this album (bound) in the National Art Library, pressmark 104.N. The Royal Photographic Society holds the waxed paper negative. Reason For Production: Commission |
Subjects depicted | |
Place depicted | |
Summary | Linnaeus Tripe (1822–1902) documented much of south India as official photographer to the Madras government (1856–1860). Tripe set off on a tour from Bangalore on 14 December 1857. He travelled through the Salem district to Srirangam, Tiruchchirappalli, Madurai, then Pudukkottai, Thanjavur, and Tiruchchirappalli again and ended his tour in Madras on 30 April 1858. This photograph is part of the album he produced of Ryacotta, or Royacottah, and the Salem district. This is the accompanying text published with the image in 1860: ‘The fortress of Ryacottah used to be guarded by a detachment of Sipahis [Hindu for soldier, meaning here an Indian soldier] from Bangalore though the manner in which they performed their duty was somewhat original and scarcely betokened much importance being attached to the Post. Mr Dykes C.S. in his Salem page 347 says.“Guard is kept from sunrise to sunset on the lone Rock that towers some thousand feet above the broken ground around its base; but with the twilight the heavy gates are closed and locked, winding path that leads from the battlement crowned precipice to their humble cottages below. The detachment of Sipahis however has now been withdrawn and their place supplied by a body of old pensioners.”’ |
Bibliographic reference | Dewan, Janet. The Photographs of Linnaeus Tripe: A Catalogue Raisonné. Toronto: Art Gallery of Ontario, 2003, p.374. |
Collection | |
Accession number | IS.46:5-1889 |
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Record created | February 1, 2007 |
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