Cavalry wearing ancient armour at Monam Torgyap

No scan for this photo

2001.59.1.42.2 (Print)

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Key Information

Photographer

Hugh E. Richardson

Collection

Hugh Richardson

Date of Photo

March 6th 1937

Region

Lhasa > Jokhang (south west corner from Doring house)

Accession number

2001.59.1.42.2

Image Dimensions

88 x 116 mm

Cavalry wearing ancient armour and holding lances slowly rounding the south west corner of the Jokhang during Monlam Torgyap. Spectators, maily monks, line the Barkhor. A man in western clothes can be seen taking a photograph on the balcony of the Doring house on the right of the image.

Further Information

Activity

Riding , Ritual Activity

Photographic Process

Print silver , Enlargement

Date Acquired

Donated August 2001

Donated by

The executors of the estate of Hugh E. Richardson

Expedition

Hugh E. Richardson

Other Information

Notes on print - 'gtor rgyag' (in pencil) not in Richardson's hand and 'Cavalry at Monlam Torgya' (in pencil) in Richardson's hand is written on the reverse of print. [KC 28/7/2006]

Manual Catalogues -

Manual Catalogues - Richardson's hand list: Negative album No.1 'New Year Ceremonies at Lhasa'. The Smon-lam gtor-rgyag Ceremony on 24th of 1st month for driving out evil. Nos. 38 - 43. 'The Ya-sor return at the head of their cavalry which then ride past the Jo-khang and round it.' [KC 19/7/2006]
Technical Information - This image seems to have been taken with a Zeiss Super Ikonta C camera. This was a 6x9 format camera but came with a film plane mask that enabled 6x4.5 images to be taken. This enabled 16 images to be taken on a roll of 120 film as opposed to 8 without the mask [MS 6/10/2005]

 Other Information - Background: See Hugh E. Richardson, Ceremonies of the Lhasa Year , 1993, London: Serindia Publications, pp 39-49 for a description of the Monlam Torgya ( mon lam gtor rgyag) ceremony. "The ceremony of Monlam Torgya is the longest and the most spectacular event of the New Year celebrations. It is the high point of the Yaso's tenure of office and the day for which the Tsisher was the preparation. It brings together religious and secular elements and marks the formal end of the Monlam Chenmo. ... (p. 39) 'When the road is clear [after the Zimchongpa depart] it is the turn of the cavalry ... . [After prostrating to the Dalai Lama] they walk back, mount their horses and lead the cavalry slowly past the Jokhang and on round the Barkhor to the south-east corner again.' (p. 44) [KC 19/7/2006]

Other Information - Dates


Other Information - Dates: In a letter to his parents dated November 6th 1936, Hugh Richardson commented that he was investigating buying a new Zeiss Super Ikonta camera [Hugh Richardson Manuscript Archive, Bodleian Library, MS. Or. Richardson 3 folio 46]. On March 29th 1937 he comments in a further letter to his parents that it would probaby be better to use the larger image frame [MS Or Richardson 3 folio 82]. This has assisted the dating of this image to 1937 [MS 6/10/2005]

For Citation use:
The Tibet Album. "Cavalry wearing ancient armour at Monam Torgyap" 05 Dec. 2006. The Pitt Rivers Museum. <http://tibet.prm.ox.ac.uk/photo_2001.59.1.42.2.html>.

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