Through a lens | The National Archives blog

Posts tagged 'Through a lens'

Thu Mar

2013

Through a lens: Malta – the George Cross Island

Posted by Steven Cable in Records and research

The Colonial Office library photographic collection contains 12 Malta albums with photographs ranging from the 1870s to the 1950s, as well as including some earlier engravings dating from the 1850s. Malta had a magnificent and unusually Italianate architectural heritage inspired by the Knights of St John and many fine architectural studies can be found amongst the collection.

The two photographs of the Valletta Opera House included here come from an album of architectural studies and views of the Grand Harbour taken by Captain R D Lyon.

Valletta Opera House, Malta (reference: CO 1069/716 (6))

Thu Mar

2013

Through a lens: views of Tel Aviv 1909-1934

Posted by Steven Cable in Records and research

These photographs come from one of a number of albums covering the Middle East in the Colonial Office library photographic collection (CO 1069) that have been made available on Flickr, the photo-sharing website.

Palestine was created as a part of the post-First World War settlement with boundaries resulting from political decisions taken by Britain and France.

Previously, under Ottoman rule, the land had been divided into three districts, each with its own Ottoman officials and a representative council of locals. Jerusalem, Haifa and Jaffa were the most important cities. The port city of Jaffa, Bride of the Sea, was mainly Arab but began to emerge as a cultural and educational centre for the immigrant Jewish population in the late 19th century. In 1909 Tel Aviv was founded as a Jewish suburb on its northern outskirts.

The lottery for housing plots Document (reference: CO 1069/730 (4))

Wed Mar

2013

Marvellous March Mash-up!

Posted by Jenni Orme in Behind the scenes, Records and research

“Come Mek Wi Dig Out Dem Roots!” was the enthusiastic cry as Sharon Tomlin, a Caribbean family historian, took to the stage at the March Mash-up at The National Archives this week.

The event was a celebration of various projects that have been running as part of the Caribbean through a lens Outreach project over the past year.

‘Caribbean through a lens’, led by my colleagues Sandra Shakespeare and Sara Griffiths, is part of the wider Through a lens photograph project that has released Colonial Office images online over the past few years. The Caribbean collection has had particular focus from the Outreach team, working with Caribbean communities across the country in response to the images - evoking memories and re-interpreting and re-using the information in their own way.

One of the popular images from the Caribbean collection. INF 10/39/10 Barbados 1950-1968

Thu Mar

2013

Cyprus through a lens: A woman’s work …..

Posted by Sally Hoult in Records and research

The latest batch of Colonial Office photographs from the Through a Lens series have been released on Flickr. These photos are from the Mediterranean series in CO 1069 and include pictures from Cyprus.

In 1952, both Greece and Turkey had just become members of NATO and the Greek Cypriot population were pressing for ENOSIS, which was becoming a serious international issue.

We hold a lot of records here at The National Archives regarding the political situation in Cyprus during the 1950s, but little about the social aspects of the island.

The Coronation on 2 June 1953 gave the Empire a wonderful opportunity to enjoy themselves, and the women of Cyprus were certainly no exception. The formal celebrations for this happy event lasted for a week, but while the men were doing what men in uniform do best -

Governor inspecting the police (catalogue reference: CO 1069/702)

- the photographs I was particularly drawn to show what the women liked to get involved with. These photographs I’ve chosen show a fun, lighter side of life enjoyed by them all.

Fri Mar

2013

Impressions of St Helena – the early 19th century

Posted by Daniel Gilfoyle in Records and research

As early as the 17th century, St Helena’s position in the South Atlantic made it important to shipping between Western Europe and the east – a useful place where ships could take on water and supplies. Its cliffs and volcanic outcrops must have presented a fairly bleak view to sailors approaching after a long voyage.

Approaching St Helena, circa 1906 (reference CO 1069/766)

The East India Company controlled the island from the 1650s through to 1815 (with brief Dutch interludes), when Napoleon was exiled to the island and the British government temporarily took direct control.

Thu Mar

2013

A stamp for the Ladies or the Gentleman?

Posted by Keith Mitchell in Records and research

The latest release of pictures from Through a Lens have been made available on Flickr, and these now include Aden, from the section entitled Yemen (the modern name for the region).

Picture of the ‘Kings’ taken outside the Palace of the Sultan of Lahey (catalogue ref: CO 1069/685/1)

The photographs include a visit by the Governor, Sir Tom Hickinbotham (catalogue ref: CO 1069/684); General views and Tribal studies (catalogue ref: CO 1069/679); and a picture of the ‘Kings’ taken outside the Palace of the Sultan of Lahey (catalogue ref: CO 1069\685, see above).

Mon Mar

2013

Irish indentured labour in the Caribbean

Posted by Michael Mahoney in Records and research

Whilst doing research for the ‘Caribbean through a lens‘ user participation project, a chance phone call from a community group in Birmingham led to the uncovering of a remarkable hidden history of Irish servants or indentured labour being employed on English owned plantations in the Caribbean. At The National Archives, we have unique documentation that demonstrates the sale of indentured labour before, during and after the English Civil War of the 17th century. ¹ Many thousands of dispossessed Catholic Irish men, women and children were transported either willingly or unwillingly in this period to work on new sugar and tobacco plantations in Barbados, Jamaica and the smaller Caribbean islands including St Kitts, Nevis, Antigua and Montserrat.

‘Unloading cane at the Searle Estate’, Barbados. (catalogue reference INF 10/44/6)

Notes:

1. See HCA 30/636, CO 1/21 and CO 1/42. ^

Thu Mar

2013

Rock of ages: Gibraltar through a lens

Posted by Tommy Norton in Records and research

Today it’s the turn of the small British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar to get the ‘through a lens’ treatment. If you’ve missed previous editions, The National Archives has been gradually releasing the contents of the Colonial Office Library’s photographic collection onto Flickr over the past two years. Our hope is that the people living there today will be able to tell us a bit more about the pictures and what they depict.

Almost 200 photos of Gibraltar, from the 19th century to the middle of the 20th, have gone online today, including rare colour photographs from the turn of the century.

Panoramic View of the Rock from the Commercial Mole (top), Gibraltar 1904 (catalogue ref: CO 1069/710)

Tue Feb

2013

Happy Waitangi Day!

Posted by James Cronan in Records and research

A very happy Waitangi Day to all New Zealanders everywhere.

To coincide with Waitangi Day, The National Archives has digitised a series of photo albums from the Colonial Office Library, in Australasia Through a Lens. The images, released on Flickr, include 211 images of New Zealand and New Zealanders. Among these are a signed photo of the All Blacks touring team of 1953-1954, scenic photographs published by Burton Bros, and scans of lithographs from the publication ‘The New Zealanders Illustrated’ by George French Angas.

The National Archives also holds three transcriptions of the Treaty of Waitangi, including the one depicted below, but I don’t want to focus this blog post on the treaty itself. The official copy of the treaty is held in The National Archives of New Zealand in Wellington, and there are plenty of people who can discuss it with far more authority than me.

Treaty of Waitangi, 6 February 1840: copy of the text of the treaty, in Maori, with the names of some of the signatories. Certified, in English, as a true copy by George Clarke, Chief Collector of Aborigines. Reference MFQ 1/402/1

Sun Jan

2013

Ripablik blong Vanuatu

Posted by Jenni Orme in Records and research

In 1960, the Lopevi volcano erupted in Vanuatu (then the New Hebrides), a small group of islands in the South Pacific.

During the eruption, photographs were taken of the steam rising from the sea where the lava spilled in:

'Steam caused by lava flowing into the sea at Lopevi during the eruption of July 1960' - Reece Discombe. CO 1069/671

Authors