Charles T. Scowen
Temple Tree Flower, Ceylon

Public Domain

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Artist Charles T. ScowenBritish, 1852–1948

CultureBritish

Titles

Temple Tree Flower, Ceylon

Datec. 1880

MediumAlbumen silver print from glass negative

DimensionsImage: 10 7/16 × 7 15/16 in. (26.5 × 20.1 cm)
Sheet: 10 7/16 × 7 15/16 in. (26.5 × 20.1 cm)
Mount: 16 15/16 × 12 1/2 in. (43.1 × 31.7 cm)

Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by Joan Morgenstern in memory of Paula Ann Neumann, Landscaper

Object number2019.417

Not on view

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Department

Photography

Object Type

PHOTOGRAPHS

Description

English by birth, Charles Scowen arrived in the British colony of Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka) in early 1873 and opened a photographic studio in 1876. Flower and plant studies of exceptional quality, such as Temple Tree Flower, were a specialty of his studio. Temple Flower, or Plumeria, are flowering ornamental shrubs, and as the inscription accompanying this picture notes, they were fragrant and used to decorate Buddhist temples.

Provenance[Dominic Winter Auctioneers, 19th & 20th Century Photography, John Thomson, China & Hong Kong, Photobooks, Cameras & Accessories, October 3, 2019, Lot 35]; purchased by MFAH, 2019.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

Inscribed in black ink, paper mat, below image: Temple. Tree. Flower – Ceylon – Strong scent // used in decorating Temples – ali [?]

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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