Description

This cabinet card portrait depicts a young woman standing in a photographer’s studio, dressed in fashionable European attire with a high lace collar, decorative bodice, and lace-trimmed cuffs. She is posed beside an ornamental pedestal against a painted woodland backdrop, a composition characteristic of late nineteenth-century studio photography. The photograph was produced by P. Mahadeo & Son of Belgaum & Bangalore, one of South India’s leading photographic studios during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The reverse bears a contemporary presentation inscription reading, “Sincerely, A. Bazirey of Glen More, N.Y.” The style and placement of the inscription suggest that it likely identifies the sitter rather than a later owner, although this remains unverified. If correct, the inscription makes the photograph particularly unusual, as surviving Indian studio portraits with probable identification to an individual from New York are comparatively uncommon.

Condition

Light overall age toning with minor surface wear and slight edge and corner wear to the mount. Contemporary presentation inscription on the reverse. Overall very good condition.

References

Harding, Colin. “How to Spot a Cabinet Card (1866–c.1914).” National Science and Media Museum Blog, 5 September 2013.  

Hughes, Stephen. “South India Addresses the World: Postcards, Circulation, and the Visual Economy of Empire.” Trans Asia Photography Review 9, no. 2 (2019).  

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