Curiously this view was not one of the more popular Clifton & Co. postcards, one of the first publishers in the city, despite its many scenes and informational value. From the building columns and the firm's location it is likely to be from Bombay.
Looking at this collection of craftsmen and spare surroundings of the workshop, one realizes how much of the fine silver work from Kashmir was a matter of manual labor and skills.
"India, with no less alacrity, has claimed her share in the common task. Every class and creed, British and Native, Princes and People, Hindoos and Mahomedans, vie with one another in a noble and emulous rivalry.
J. D. Gondhalekar (1909-1981) was an Indian artist from a Pune family that owned a successful printing press. He studied at the Slade School of Art in London and in the 1950s served as the Dean of the J. J. School of Art in Bombay.
Many early Bombay postcards focused on the cotton trade, the source, with opium, of much of the city's early wealth.
[Verso] "Mission Hospital, Kolar, India.
Dear aunt Connie:
This will not reach you until after your birthday. Am sorry I did not get it off before. Hope you have a very happy day. This center piece was made in a Mission School. Much Love, Edith.
Postmarked Ferozpur, January 13, 1910 and addressed to Master Bottie Anderson, 92 Manor Park, London S.E. England.
"Lots of Love and Kisses from Daddy & Mother Ferozpur Jan 13 1910."
Given how ubiquitous the trope of snake charmers and India was in popular Western culture in the early 20th century, it is refreshing to find that they are not as common in postcards as one might expect. True, major publishers like Clifton & Co.
The April 4, 1905 earthquake, one of the largest in India history, killed over 20,000 people. This undivided back postcard would have been one of the first times the postcard was being put to the reporting of current events use in British India.
One of those postcards that illustrates the elasticity of time. The protagonist in the foreground is blurry because of the long exposure, perhaps a second or two, that the photographer required for the shot.
