Bombay Mumbai

A nicely composed postcard showing the progression in the size of ocean-going vessels, from the small boat in the foreground, to the larger ship on right, and even larger ship in the distance on the left.

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An exquisite Dhurandhar portrait, this of a widow framed in front of a tree and a temple in the background. Orthodox widows were normally not permitted to remarry and had to obey strict dress codes like not wearing a blouse under her sari.

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One of those fascinating advertising postcards that sheds light in the little remembered tonics and remedies that coursed the world in the 19th and 20th centuries – and still do.

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Lascars were sailors, mostly from the subcontinent, serving on European ships that sailed the world and who spoke their own multinational tongue, "Lascari." Throughout the 16th through 19th centuries many landed in Britain and America, with a few…

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D.B. Taraporevala & Sons, Booksellers, Newsagents and Statioers at 190 Hornby Road was a Mumbai fixture for much of the 19th and 20th century, the place where foreign periodicals, books and newspapers flowed into the city and inspired artists like…

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Another Dhurandhar postcard masterpiece, with the pale green background and statue of Lord Mahavir, the last Tirthankara of the Jain religion setting off the living priest in the foreground.

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[Original caption] The Museum. As befitting an important town like Bombay, the Museum is indeed a very fine one and contains many valuable collections. [end]

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[Original caption] The Bara Bazaar, Bombay (city). The Bara Bazaar is one of the busiest spots in the city of Bombay, and is as substantial in its industries as it is in appearance.

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A postcard depicting hospitals in Mumbai used to treat some of the Indian troops who fought in World War I as part of the British Army.

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