Java: Views and portraits from Java

Java -- Photographer:
Woodbury & Page
(active 1857-1908). Views and portraits from Java, including Batavia, Bekasi, Pati, and Surakarta. 1870s.
10
albumen prints, mounted to board. Each ca. 19 x 24 cm (25 x 30 cm) or reverse. Some with printed studio name in the negative.
This group documents key moments and figures from colonial-era Java during the late 19th century. Among the images are the execution of the so-called Tambun murderers in Bekasi (1869), the Bupati of Pati, Raden Adipati Arya Candra Adinegara with his entourage, and the royal procession of Pakubuwono IX, Susuhunan of Surakarta. Also included are striking portraits of wayang topeng performers, views of village life, and ceremonial gatherings. These prints exemplify Woodbury & Page’s distinctive ability to combine ethnographic detail with a formal photographic sensibility, capturing the diverse visual culture of the Dutch East Indies with remarkable clarity. – Some foxing of mounts, some fading and light scuff marks, otherwise all in good to very good condition.