Juggler with goat and monkey
An Dhurandhar portrait of a familiar sight on Bombay streets, the multi-tasking juggler. Note once again the soft city backdrop.
Court sized
Court card or court sized card was the name given to a size of picture postcard, mainly used in the United Kingdom, which were approximately 4.75 x 3.5 inches and predates the standard size of 5.5 x 3.5 inches (Wikipedia).
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.
The Governor's Bodyguard
Formed in 1865, the Governor's Bodyguard was a colorful, often-illustrated cavalry in their red and white uniforms and mustachioed Rajput horsemen.
Shipping on the Hooghly
An example of how the earliest postcards of a place were often design masterpieces. Note how the palm tree merges with the ship masts, and nautical rope and elements carefully surround the whole frame.
Punkha Boy
A key figure in the Raj was the punkha boy or man, who pulled the string that moved a fan in a bar or in the sleeping quarters to keep their employers cool.
Parsee Priest
From Dhurandhar's earliest postcard series featuring the people of Bombay. Once again, a gesture defines character, with the white space next to the priest space for the sender to write a message.
The Albert Museum, Jeypore
A very early postcard of Jaipur, made from an albumen print, title and photographer visible in white where it was inscribed onto the albumen negative. The color was applied through hand-tinting. Compare to a colorized postcard of the same image made
Greetings from Darjeeling
One can only marvel at the early "Greetings from" postcard, the way five photographs are woven into one image with the help of plant motifs, in this case tree branches but often palm trees for Indian images.
Coolie with his Basket
A postcard by the great Indian painter M.V. Dhurandhar illustrating an Englishwoman looking over a coolie offering his services with an empty basket. Note the cleverly positioned Indian woman with a basket on her head in the background.
The message
Souvenir of Darjeeling Himalaya
Thomas Paar was one of the earliest publishers of Darjeeling postcards, and a longtime photographer with a grand studio in the middle of the hillstation.
