Key Information

Photographer

Frederick Spencer Chapman? Major Finch?

Collection

Frederick Spencer Chapman

Date of Photo

December 1936 - January 1937?

Region

Lhasa > Trapshi

Accession number

1998.131.509.2

Image Dimensions

60 x 91

Lhasa military band and colours near Trapshi. Onlookers line the road to watch them march past

Further Information

Photographic Process

Print gelatin silver

Date Acquired

Donated 1994

Donated by

Mrs Faith Spencer Chapman

Expedition

British Diplomatic Mission to Lhasa 1936-37

Photo also owned by

Frederick Spencer Chapman

Previous Catologue Number

F.11 [view film roll]

Previous Pitt Rivers Museum Number

SC.T.2.509

Other Information

Notes on print/mount - The contact print has been made using Velox paper and the trade name in an oval can be seen on the back of the print, as can the batch development number '640' in red ink [MS 30/03/2006]

Manual Catalogues -

Manual Catalogues - Caption in Chapman's hand-written list of negatives made whilst on the Mission to Lhasa, 1936-7 [See PRM Manuscripts Collection]: '1/2 Lhasa band and colours'; PRM Manuscripts Collection: ‘List of Tibetan Prints and Negatives’ - Book 1, From Gangtok to the Natu La August 1936: ‘28/2 - Fields of delphiniums and acconite at 11,000 on the way to Lhasa’ //PRM Manuscripts Collection: ‘List of Tibetan Prints and Negatives’ - Book 3: ‘15/3 - Tibetan band and colours’ [MS 30/03/2006]

Other Information - Setting

Other Information - Setting: Although there was an official military review in September 1936 overseen by Brigadier Neame, the group of negatives from which this image was made does not seem to relate to that event. Rather, it seems more likely that this is a photograph of the band practising or participating in some other event [MS 30/03/2006]

Other Information - Photographer: Although 'F S Chapman' has been written on the back of this print, it is possible that this image was taken not by Chapman but by another photographer, possibly Major Finch, who was made the new Commander of the Gyantse escort in November 1936 and who visited Lhasa for Christmas and New Year, departing on January 2nd 1937. 'F' in this case, therefore, may refer to Major Finch, as the sequence of images suggests a very brief stay in Lhasa around the New Year period, followed by a return to Gyantse. In this case, according to the order of images taken, this image would have been taken before departing for Lhasa. Chapman asked other members of the Mission to use his additional cameras at times, and/or acquired images from them that they took for themselves to include in the Mission collection. [MS 7/3/2005]

For Citation use:
The Tibet Album. "Lhasa military band and colours" 05 Dec. 2006. The Pitt Rivers Museum. <http://tibet.prm.ox.ac.uk/photo_1998.131.509.2.html>.

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Lhasa military band and colours