New Zealand - Photograph album of a trip through the South Island of New Zealand, 1894-1900

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Summary

Title:
Photograph album of a trip through the South Island of New Zealand
Dates:
1894-1900
Abstract:
Souvenir album documenting a journey taken by a party of travelers, through the South Island of New Zealand, probably between 1894 and 1900. Many of the large albumen prints are stock photos, signed "Iles Photo," from the studio of Arthur James Iles, a well-known photographer who worked in Thames, N.Z. in the early 1890s, and later, in Rotorua, after 1901.
Extent:
1 album (57 photographic prints) : albumen, 32 x 26 cm (albums)
Language:
Finding aid is written in English. and Materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Photograph album of a trip through the South Island of New Zealand (Collection 94/111). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.

Background

Scope and content:

The album contains twelve of the Maori portraits which were Iles's speciality: in addition to a portrait of Maggie Papakura, a well-known Maori tour guide, and the Maori chieftain, Hori Ngakapa, with tattoo or "moko," there are several portraits of young Maori women wearing "kahu huruhuru" or feather cloaks, "korowai" or finely-woven cloaks decorated with black cords, and "hei tiki", Maori ornamental neck pendants. In one Iles photo, a group of five Maori children perform a "haka," a traditional Maori dance. Also included are nine additional unsigned photos of Maoris seated in front of a "runanga" or meeting house, elaborately decorated with Maori wood-carvings. In some of the photos, one of the Maoris wears a feather cloak sewn in a checkerboard pattern; in three of the photos, three Western travelers, probably the album's owners, each don the cloak and pose for pictures. The small amateur panoramic view of a city, looking down from a nearby hill, may possibly be Nelson, port of entry for the travelers. Other photos include seven amateur [?] views of men and women in Western dress rowing on a river banked by lush gardens and weeping willows, probably the Avon River running through the Botanical Gardens in Christchurch; a view of a large Victorian house with veranda, surrounded by large trees and gardens, possibly along the Avon River; and a photo of a catch of two large eels hanging from hooks in front of the house. Photographs documenting the travelers' journey along the Buller River, through Buller Gorge--these are signed "JR"--feature landscapes labelled Fern Arch, Redman's Bar (just past Lyell on the Buller River), Hawk's Crag (between Berlins and Tiroroa), and a horse and carriage being ferried across the river on a flat-bottomed cable ferry near Westport. Stock photos, as well as the tourists' own amateur photos document their travels through Otira Gorge, revealing the rugged landscape of the Southern Alps, and a stagecoach, navigating a narrow mountainous road near Warnock's Nob, traversing a river--possibly the Bealey River, and stopped at what appears to be an "accomodation house" or wayside inn, perhaps in the Castle Hill area. Also included are six amateur photographs of unidentified hot springs and geysers in the Southern Alps. Finally, there are two photos of steamships in the harbor (at Nelson?), probably the ships which brought the travelers to New Zealand.

Physical location:
Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact UCLA Library Special Collections for paging information.
Physical facet:

Title supplied by cataloger; possible range of dates suggested by dates of stock photos, and style of dress and transportation displayed in photos.

Photographs are mounted on rectos and versos of heavy board leaves, with some foxing on most leaves; many photos have captions in negative along lower edge, and are signed "Iles Photo" or "JR", with studio stock number.

Bound in dark blue cloth album, with black leather spine and corners; gray endpapers.

Rules or conventions:
Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: a Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Processed by Jane Carpenter with assistance from Simon Elliott; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline Cubé.
Date Prepared:
© 2013
Date Encoded:
Machine-readable finding aid derived from MARC record, encoding added via Notetab Pro. Date of source: 2013 . Supplementary encoding and revision by Caroline Cubé.

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for research. STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact UCLA Library Special Collections for paging information.

Terms of access:

Property rights to the physical object belong to the UC Regents. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Photograph album of a trip through the South Island of New Zealand (Collection 94/111). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.

Location of this collection:
A1713 Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575, US
Contact:
(310) 825-4988
AskLSC@library.ucla.edu
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