Lot 26

Lot 26

Extraordinary rare oversized half-plate hand tinted ambrotype, (4 ¾” x 6”), of three Indian gentlemen. While we’ve offered other Indian pieces over the years they have always featured a regional servant or nanny for British soldiers, families or children. The opportunity to find a strictly ethnographic portrait like this is extremely difficult and especially one of this size. Obviously the man in the middle is of some importance -possibly regional royalty or a government official. His two tall slender servants flank him on either side. Wearing traditional dhoti wraps, their kurta’s are a vibrant blue, pink and a beautiful rich green that we rarely see. Their turbans have also been tinted with the seated man’s sporting light red polka-dots. An added layer of intrigue is this image has been captured outside as we can see grass on the ground with a makeshift plain backdrop in place. Possibly this was captured by an itinerant photographer or one of the well-known British photographers traveling through the region photographing remote areas. The image was purchased out of Australia with just the brass mat and preserver and no case. We have found an English case that fits this image but as mentioned this didn’t come with the image. This spectacular ambrotype has great tones and contrast. There are a few tiny spots and the two servants are soft in focus as seen. We doubt you will find another like this on the market so don’t miss this opportunity!