A brief overview of Simla; as seen through the eyes of some of the first photographers, professional and amateur, to have worked there.

This lecture depicts the development of Simla from the mid 1850’s through to the 1900’s, illustrated with a range of rare photographs taken from the private collection of Hugh Rayner, a photographic researcher and collector, specialising in the history of Photography in India & South Asia, and who has been collecting Simla photographs for over 25 years.

The lecture covers the work of the most important early Simla photographers including Dr John Murray, John Saché, James Craddock, Samuel Bourne, Oscar Malitte, as well as many other studios, both known and unknown.

The talk will conclude with a brief Lantern Slide show of some original lantern slides of Simla and surrounding hills, shown on a vintage projector.

This lecture is one of a series being held in parallel with our exhibition 'In the Image of the Other: Visualising a British-Himalayan Town, Shimla', on view at the Oriental Museum, 14th October 2016 to 30th March 2017.

This lecture will be held in room EH009, Elvet Hill House, adjacent to the Oriental Museum, from 6 - 8pm on Tuesday 13th December. 

See here for the speaker's bio.