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c. 1880s India - woman beggar and children
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c. 1880s India - woman beggar and children
c. 1880s India - image from an album of Indian types and trades designed to illustrate India to a British viewer - beggar woman and children
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Media ID 23433798
Collodion Colony Cultural Ethnicity Ethnographic Labour Skill Albumen
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This evocative image captures the stark reality of life in 1880s India during the height of British colonial rule. The photograph, taken from an ethnographic album of Indian types and trades, depicts a woman begging on the side of the road with several children at her feet. Dressed in tattered clothing, the woman's expression conveys a deep sense of sadness and desperation, while the children, clad in ragged rags, look up at her with hopeful eyes. The image is a poignant reminder of the social and economic disparities that existed between the colonizers and the indigenous population during this period. The photograph was likely taken using the wet collodion or albumen process, popular methods for producing high-quality, detailed images during the late 19th century. The use of these techniques allowed for a level of detail that brings the subjects and their surroundings to life, making the viewer feel as if they are witnessing the scene firsthand. The image also serves as a window into the past, providing a glimpse into the traditional ways of life that were rapidly disappearing as India became increasingly integrated into the British Empire. The woman and children in this photograph represent the many indigenous people who were forced to adapt to new economic realities, often resorting to begging or other forms of labor to survive. Despite the difficult circumstances depicted in this photograph, it is an important historical record of a significant era in Indian history. The image invites us to reflect on the complex and often troubled relationship between the British and the people of India during the colonial period, and to consider the ongoing impact of colonialism on contemporary Indian society.
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