Key Information

Photographer

Frederick Spencer Chapman

Collection

Hugh E. Richardson

Date of Photo

November 23rd 1936

Named Person

Taring Rinpoche

Region

Lhasa > Dekyi Lingka

Accession number

BMR.86.1.26.1

Taring Rinpoche, a high incarnate lama official wearing gold lacquer papier mache hat worn when riding

Further Information

Photographic Process

Print gelatin silver

Expedition

British Diplomatic Mission to Lhasa 1936-37

Photo also owned by

Donated to the British Museum in 1986 by Hugh E. Richardson

Previous Catologue Number

C.13.24 In publication
'Lhasa Mission 1936, Diary of Events', P. Neame, H. Richardson, F. S. Chapman, Government of India Political Department [Note: photographs for October 18th - November 4th 1936 are not included as their relationship to text is not detailed; see Mission Diary text for details of images] [see photos in publication]

Related Collections

F. S. Chapman Collection in the Pitt Rivers Museum

This Image also appears in another collection

1998.131.490

Other Information

Notes on print/mount - 'Taring Rinpoche' has been written beneath the image in the album in pencil, apparently not by Hugh Richardson [MS 12/06/2006]

Manual Catalogues -

Manual Catalogues - Caption in Chapman's hand-written list of negatives made whilst on the Mission to Lhasa, 1936-7 [See PRM Manuscripts Collection]: 'Taring Rimpoche (close up)'; PRM Manuscripts Collection: ‘List of Tibetan Prints and Negatives’ - Book 2: ‘32/3 - Tering Rimpoche, a very high lama and brother of Tering Rajah, wearing gold papier mache hat’ [MS 28/03/2006]

Research publication - Clare Harris and Tsering Shakya (eds.), 'Seeing Lhasa: British Depictions of the Tibetan Capital 1936-1947', Chicago: Serindia Publications, 2003, p. 128.

Biographical Information - Taring Rinpoche (Lhatsun Rinpoche) wearing the gold-lacquered papier-mâché hat used by monks when riding on horseback. Taring Rinpoche was a high-ranking monk official and the half-brother of Rajah Taring of Sikkim, (making him Jigme Taring’s uncle). At one time he was in charge of all the monasteries in Sikkim and according to Spencer Chapman had “the wisest and most expressive eyes in all of Asia.” He was a son of Yeshi Dolma, who later married Chogyal Tutop Namyal of Sikkim. And the Incarnate Lama of Mondroling monastery. He lived in Gangtok in Sikkim but was expelled in 1934 and returned to Lhasa. [CH 2003]

Other Information - Album: This image appears alongside two others of the Ngagchen Rinpoche and Mondo on page 26 of Hugh Richardson's album 'Lhasa 1936' [MS 12/06/2006]

Other Information - Related Images

Other Information - Related Images: Images prefixed with 'C.13' comprise a group of negatives containing images of a photograph of the 13th Dalai Lama, Bhondong, the mission hospital group, the Regent’s arrival [departure], 5 Khampa beggars, the Ngagchen Rimpoche, Taring Rimpoche. There is some confusion as to whether or not the pictures of the Regent relate to the arrival or departure as at one point in the list [C.13.9] Chapman refers to the 'departure'. However, most of the C.13 images used in the Mission Diary relating to the arrival back in Lhasa in November are C.13 images. It seems likely that they are of the arrival back in Lhasa on November 23rd, therefore, following which Taring Rinpoche visited the Mission for lunch, thus possibly providing the occasion of this photograph [MS 28/03/2006]

For Citation use:
The Tibet Album. "Taring Rinpoche" 05 Dec. 2006. The British Museum. <http://tibet.prm.ox.ac.uk/photo_BMR.86.1.26.1.html>.

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