1998.285.364 (Glass negative)
Raw Image
Rabden Lepcha
Sir Charles Bell
March 3rd 1921?
Lhasa >
1998.285.364
120 x 163 mm
Riding
Negative glass plate gelatin , Negative Half Plate
Donated 1983
St Antony's College, Oxford.
Sir Charles Bell's Mission to Lhasa 1920-21
Royal Central Asiatic Society
Rabden Lepcha?
H.334
BL.H.334
Manual Catalogues - Bell's entry for H.334 is as follows but it does not seem to relate closely to the image which his caption cross-references:"[No. of chapter] XXXII. [Subject of Chapter] The Religion [Subject of Illustration] H.334 (ej) Ditto [ref: H.333/1998.285.363: A religious dance]." [MS 22/6/2004]
Other Information - Setting: This image may be of the Chipgyu Chenmo procession when the Dalai Lama moved to his summer residence in the Norbu Lingka. The quality of the image may be explained by the conditions under which it was taken. At the Dalai Lama’s request Bell had some photographs taken of the procession by Rabden, but taking place in the early morning it meant that the light was too weak to produce good results [Sir Charles Bell's Diary Vol. IX, pp. 29-31]. However, in a related image [1998.285.429] Bell describes this as being of crowds watching a procession after the Torgya festival, in which case it would be dated to 3rd March 1921. In neither case would Bell himself have been at this spot to take the photographs [MS 23/02/2006]
For Citation use:
The Tibet Album.
"Procession in Lhasa"
05 Dec. 2006. The Pitt Rivers Museum.
<http://tibet.prm.ox.ac.uk/photo_1998.285.364.html>.
For more information about photographic usage or to order prints, please visit the The Pitt Rivers Museum.
© The Pitt Rivers Museum