Views of Sri Lankan archaeological sites by Scowen & Co. and Joseph Lawton, 1870-1893

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Summary

Creators:
Scowen & Co
Abstract:
The collection comprises views of structures and sculptures in Sri Lanka from the sites of Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa. The twelve photographs of Anuradhapura are by Charles Thomas Scowen. The photographs of Polonnaruwa were likely all taken by Joseph Lawton. The photographs were taken shortly after the rediscovery of these important Buddhist monuments, but before official excavations were begun by the Archaeological Department of Ceylon in the 1890s.
Extent:
1.5 Linear Feet (1 box: 24 albumen prints)
Language:
Collection material is in English.
Preferred citation:

Views of Sri Lankan archaeological sites by Scowen & Co. and Joseph Lawton, 1870-1893, The Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, Accession no. 97.R.51.

http://hdl.handle.net/10020/cifa97r51

Background

Scope and content:

The collection comprises views of structures and sculptures in Sri Lanka from the sites of Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa dating from the 10th to 13th centuries AD, with some components dating to the 2nd century BC. The photographs of Anuradhapura were all taken by Charles Thomas Scowen or one of his studio operatives. Structures depicted at Anuradhapura include the Issurumuniya temple, Lowamahapaya (the Brazen Palace) and Ruwanweliseya, the Buddha's relic shrine. Also shown are many sculptural elements and Buddha statues of the Abhayagiri Dagoba as well as the site's bas-relief sandakada pahanas or moon-stones.

The photographs of Polonnaruwa were likely all taken by Joseph Lawton. At Polonnaruwa sites include the Gal Vihara temple, Dalada Maligawa, Abhayagiri (Northern) monastery, and the Thivanka Pilimage (Image House) as well as various sculptural elements such as statues of lions, the Buddha, and the Gal Pota, or Book of Stone.

Two photographs are unidentified as to either site or photgrapher and include a view of a house or temple built under a large oblong rock and a colossal standing Buddha statue.

The photographs in the collection were taken shortly after the rediscovery of these important Buddhist monuments, but before official excavations were begun by the Archaeological Department of Ceylon in the 1890s. The sites have been extensively excavated, modified, and restored since the photographs were taken.

The 12 Scowen photographs have printed captions in the negative. Eleven of these also bear the photographer's printed name: Scowen & Co. Three photographs have both a printed name and "Scowen" written in the negative, and one photograph has only "Scowen" written in the negative.

Ten photographs by or attributed to Joseph Lawton have pencil captions on their versos with numbers apparently correlating to plate numbers in one of Lawton's publications. One photograph has "Lawton" written in the negative on the trunk of a felled tree.

Biographical / historical:

Charles T. Scowen (1852-1948) arrived in Sri Lanka as an assistant to R. Edley, a commission agent, in 1873. In 1876 he established his first photographic studio, Scowen & Co., in Kandy, and by 1885 he had opened a studio in Colombo. Scowen & Co., which was especially known for its flower and plant studies, was active until the mid-1890s when Colombo Apothecaries Co. acquired its entire negative stock. Scowen, who appears to have become a proprietary tea planter for a time in Sri Lanka, died in Sudbury, England.

The British photographer, Joseph Lawton, who was initially employed in Kandy, Sri Lanka, by the trading company H. C. Bryde and Sons, established his own photographic studio in that town in the mid-1860s. In 1870 he was commissioned by the Archaeological Committee, which had been established by the Governor of Ceylon in 1868, to photograph the main archaeological sites in Sri Lanka. After working at the sites of Anuradhapura, Mihintale, Polonnaruwa, and Sigiriya during 1870 and 1871, where he was often actively involved in clearing the jungle so that the sites could be photographed and excavated, Lawton fell ill. He returned to England to recover, but died there in 1872. Lawton produced two sets of photographs from his photographic campaigns for the Archaeological Committee, one of which was retained in Sri Lanka and the other of which was sent to the Colonial Office in London, and is now in the British National Archives. Lawton's studio, under the direction of his wife Helen, continued selling his photographs to the tourist market. The studio was taken over by R. Charter in 1885 and Lawton's original negatives were scattered among many buyers and are now considered to be lost.

Acquisition information:
Acquired in 1997.
Processing information:

The collection was processed in 2018 by Beth Ann Guynn who also wrote the finding aid.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged in a single series: Series I. Views of Sri Lankan archaeological sites by Scowen & Co. and Joseph Lawton, 1870-1893.

Physical location:
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Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for use by qualified researchers.

Terms of access:

Contact Library Reproductions and Permissions.

Preferred citation:

Views of Sri Lankan archaeological sites by Scowen & Co. and Joseph Lawton, 1870-1893, The Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, Accession no. 97.R.51.

http://hdl.handle.net/10020/cifa97r51

Location of this collection:
1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100
Los Angeles, CA 90049-1688, US
Contact:
(310) 440-7390
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