Albumin print, Japan, hand-colored, Suwa Shrine, Nagasaki, circa 1890

This historical photograph shows a graceful, culturally historical, and lively scene of people in Japan from the famous Meiji period, taken as an original albumin print mounted on cardboard. The albumin process used was the dominant photochemical technique of that era, in which egg white was used to bind the light-sensitive silver salts to the paper.

The motif documents the history-rich Suwa Shrine in Nagasaki, which in Western travel albums of that era was often referred to as Oswa Temple or, due to a famous statue on the grounds, as Bronze Horse Temple. In the center of the composition, 4 women in traditional kimonos stand on the monumental stone staircase in front of the wooden temple portal. Some of the women hold closed umbrellas in their hands, which represents an extremely popular and typical motif in 19th-century Japanese travel photography to demonstrate Far Eastern elegance to Western travelers. The absolute highlight of this artwork, composed in landscape format, is the elaborate hand-coloring. Japan was the absolute world leader in this precise hand-coloring technique, used to create the impression of a lifelike color photograph.

Since the exact authorship is officially considered unknown due to the lack of a photographer's signature, the work is attributed to the large commercial studios of that time. This spectacular document originated in the period between 1880 and 1900. The antique rarity features the photograph dimensions of 25,8 x 20 cm mounted on a 27,5 x 21,3 cm original cardboard backing. Good age-appropriate condition with an even, slight toning. It shows a waviness of the cardboard due to storage, partially somewhat yellowed cardboard margins, and a slightly faded image surface, as well as the original white caption within the photo negative at the bottom left margin: "213 OSWA TEMPLE."