IDNO

P.96894.WIL

Description

On Cech’s list describing prints:
“(1-18: Ludlow’s photos of Bhutan)
16. “Bhutanese woman at Bumthang 7.33”
See gi: Bumthang
Portrait study. The woman is wearing necklaces of corals, turquoises and a zhi stone (a black agate with etched white geometric patterns). She has a velvet jacket (velvet was made in England and exported to India) and a “ra-chu” scarf (the female equivalent to the male’s “kabne”) (see GTH: Bhutanese ceremonial shawls).” [printed text]
For more information see Cech’s list.

Place

S Asia; Bhutan; Bumthang

Cultural Affliation

Named Person

Photographer

Ludlow, Frank

Collector / Expedition

Date

July 1933

Collection Name

Williamson Collection

Source

Williamson, Margaret

Format

Print Black & White

Primary Documentation

Other Information

Context: The beautiful lady is wearing all her ornaments including the gold torquise studded earrings, necklace of cat eyes and coral. She is also wearing a koma ( brooch). Koma is slightly different brooch from Ting-kahb. She is also wearing a donkheb which is still worn by the women in Bumthang . She has also worn her rachu (scarf for women) it looks like it is made from Bura too. All women in Bhutan till recently used to keep their hair short like the women in this picture. [Dawa Dem 19/9/2008]

The transcription of this album by Mark Turin and Sara Shneiderman was carried out with reference to Krystina Cech’s catalogue list alone. Alex Nadin has since revised their cataloguing by systematically matching their records to the images. Margaret Williamson’s handwritten captions for photographs have now been transcribed into the Inscription field, and Cech’s descriptions appear in the Description field. Correct entries for Place, Named Person and Other Nos. have also been entered by Alex Nadin. [Sudeshna Guha 29/10/2002]