[Original caption] High Court. West of Government House, Calcutta, and nearer the river, stand the Law Courts, built in 1872, and said to be modelled on the beautiful Town Hall of Ypres in Belgium. [end]
[Original caption] Devil Dancers, Calcutta. The Devil Dancer with his painted body, hideous mask, and fantastic head-dress is supposed to strike terror unto the beholder; as a rule he but succeeds in amusing him.
A small boat on the Hooghly, the "Captain Buxo." Hobson-Jobson defines "DINGY, DINGHY , s. Beng. diṇgī; [H. dingī, dengī, another form of dongī, Skt.
Subhash Chandra Bose, also called Netaji, was one of the most prominent leaders of the Indian freedom movement, and remains one of the most revered leaders of the Indian freedom struggle, a representative of the most aggressive line with British…
Jute was one of the major agricultural products during the Raj and for some period afterwards, with most of the crop grown in East Bengal, and the fiber processed in mills in and around Kolkata.
A satirical postcard showing a "Baboo," which Hobson-Jobson defined as used in Kolkata "with a slight savour of disparagement, as characterizing a superficially cultivated, but too often effeminate, Bengali," pulling ahead on the most modern of…
A contemporary artist's rendering of one of the most popular postcard subjects, the all important "bhistie" who brought water in an animal skin to the thirsty.
A portrait of Tagore published three years after his death. In Krishna Dutta and Andrew Robinson's excellent biography of this great man (Bloomsbury, 1995), there appears this translation of this poignant poem:
[Original caption] The Pagoda, Eden Gardens. The Eden Gardens are beautifully laid-out grounds and were for many years the gathering place in the evening of the fashionable society of Calcutta.
While an exchange of written messages has been part of history for a long time, the concept of a regular postal service seems to have arisen in Europe during the 15th century when French students were requesting so many goods, a regular service was…
