Lot 144
SAMUEL BOURNE (BRITISH 1834-1912)
SIX CITY VIEWS IN INDIA
Auction: 10 June 2026 from 14:00 BST
Description
six albumen prints, on three album pages (double sided) two signed within the print, one captioned within the print, all captioned in ink and number in pencil outside the image
Dimensions
Folio 29cm x 39.5cm (Double sided)
Footnote
Plate titles
A) Palaces at Lucknow; verso The Massacre Ghat, Cawnpore
B) Bathing in the Hooghly, Calcutta; verso Banian tree, Botanical Gardens, Calcutta
C) The Old Court House Street, Calcutta; verso Government House, Calcutta, (some years ago)
Samuel Bourne (1834–1912) was a British photographer whose work in India in the 1860s made him one of the leading landscape and architectural photographers of the 19th century. After arriving in India in 1863, he produced more than two thousand images, including three ambitious Himalayan expeditions that demonstrated exceptional technical skill with the wet‑plate process. His clear, carefully composed photographs helped shape Victorian views of the Indian subcontinent. Together with Charles Shepherd (1858-1878) Bourne founded Bourne & Shepherd Studios one of the world’s longest‑running photographic firms. Known for portraits, topographical views, and ethnographic studies, the studio earned a reputation for technical excellence and wide distribution. It continued to operate under the Bourne name long after he died, issuing prints well into the 20th century, and remained a major photographic institution until its closure in 2016.