Three Chinese Ladies
SOLD April 2010 |
Vintage albumen print by an unidentified Chinese studio circa 1890, depicting three Chinese women drinking and smoking. Descending from the family of Charles Goddard Weld. Print size 10.25 x 8 inches (26x20 cm).
While it cannot be precisely made out, I believe the label of the leftmost bottle reads "HIGHLAND WHISKEY." Despite their liquor and tobacco, these three appear to be upper class Chinese ladies with traditional bound feet.
Condition: Print is unmounted, in very good to excellent condition, may have some wrinkling, small losses at edges, other minor defects. Tones in range of 7-9 out of 10.
This photograph comes from a group of travel albums descending from the family of Charles Goddard Weld (1857-1911) and believed to be Weld's personal albums, as several bear his bookplate. Weld, a Boston-area physician, traveled to the East at the end of the 19th century and had important connections to Asian art as well as to the photographer Edward Curtis. He donated a collection of over 100 original Curtis images to the Peabody Essex Museum of Salem, Massachusetts and an important collection of Asian art to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. These photographs were likely gathered by Weld during his travels in the East.
Below: Book plate from one of Weld's travel albums:
