Ancient Buddhist Temple Gwalior
Buddhism had largely departed India by this time, having flourished between the 3rd century BCE and 13th century CE, but its temples still stood and were frequently subjects of postcards.
Religion
The Great Burning Ghat in Benares
[Original German] Der Grosse Verbrennungs Platz in Benares [end]
One of the earliest artist-signed postcards of India.
Greetings from Bombay
From an early "Greetings from" series by D.M. Macropolo & Co., a renowned Raj tobacconist with retail stores in Kolkata and Mumbai.
Calcutta
One of the earliest postcards of India, Calcutta, published by W. Rossler, a German or Austrian photographer in the city in 1897. Lithograph, Court sized, Printed in Austria. Undivided back.
Naina Devi Temple
[Verso, handwritten] "Buddhist temple from which Naini Tal takes its name. Immediately behind this is the polo ground."
Gangavataran
[Original caption] Shankar receives the river Ganga on his head in compliance with the prayers of Bhageeratha. [end]
This image is from a famous painting by Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906), one of India's most important painters.
Bangalore. The Jumma Masjid Old Poor House Road.
[Original caption] The Jummas Masjid, Old Poor House Road. Jumma Masjid means "Friday Mosque" they say, and so it is not surprising that more than one Indian temple bears the name.
A Mendicant Friar of Behar
A mendicant is a beggar, one who depends on the goodwill of others to survive. Looking at this short gentleman, one can imagine that he probably had little choice with at least one club foot and two walking sticks to get around, slowly.
Jumma Masjid Bombay
Another exuberant, deftly rendered very early postcard by Paul Gerhardt, chief lithographer at the Ravi Varma Press in Bombay. Note the simply drawn mosque minarets, the colors that pull you in while the cart pushes out into the foreground space.
Bull Temple, Bangalore
This 16th century temple to Nandi, the sacred bull, was built by Kempe Gowda who also founded the city of Bangalore.
