Saint Helena [UNIQUE PRESENTATIONAL ALBUM W/ 110 ORIGINAL ALBUMEN PHOTOGRAPHS]
[Saint Helena]: [ca. 1860s-1890s]. Hardcover. Oblong quarto. 52 double-sided heavy stock leaves. Period full black morocco boards with gilt lettering, ruling and tooling on the front cover and spine, with raised bands. Gilt edges. Marbled endpapers and dentelles. Presentational text on the front cover to "Miss Sterndale" from "The Inhabitants of St. Helena". The recipient is likely one of the daughters of Robert Armitage Sterndale (1839-1902) who served as the British governor general of Saint Helena from 1897-1902. The album was likely presented on the occasion of the family leaving the island in 1902.
The album is comprised of a total of 104 mounted albumen prints visually documenting the island of Saint Helena, most famous as being the place of exile for Napoleon after his defeat at Waterloo. The album documents a wide range of subjects, ranging from stunning landscapes to wildlife, buildings and structures, military and diplomatic ceremonies, and Jamestown, as well as multiple images of Sterndale and his family. 6 images are double-page panoramic spreads (some folding), showing various dramatic landscapes and locations on the island. Napoleonic subjects are of course also included in the album, such as Napoleon's tomb and Longwood House (his residence), as well as three photographs after illustrated images of Napoleon. Each image contains a printed text caption on a cutout piece of paper, pasted underneath. These early photographs of the island were likely taken some time around the 1890s, with one captioned image specifically dated to 1890.
[WITH]
6 additional loose photographs have been laid in to the album. Each of these measures 4 x 5 1/2" and is mounted onto a loose leaf measuring 8 x 9 1/4". These all are bordered in ink with the calligraphic text "Sainte Héléne" handwritten above. The photographs document a stop over at the Saint Helena, and include images of visitors at the Valley of the Tomb (original resting place of Napoleon's body before repatriation), areas around Jamestown and St. James' Church. According to handwritten notes from a previous owner, included here, these images originate from a photo album titled "Reunion" (Island). That album was said to document a voyage ultimately destined for Madagascar and Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean. The fact that the ship stopped over at Saint Helena en route, implies that they predate the opening of the Suez Canal (1869), which would have enabled a more direct route, without necessitating travel around the Cape of Good Hope. This context shows that these images likely date from the 1860s, making them some of the earliest known photographs of the Island.*
Binding with minor to light rubbing and bumping to corners and the front hinge of the spine. Interior with sporadic instances of minor to light foxing to the plates, mostly confined to the margins. Images overall clean and bright. Binding and interior in very good condition overall. vg. Item #54857
*John Isaac Lilley, who served as Assistant Superintendent of the Military Store in Jamestown between 1861 and 1866, took the earliest known images of the Island. These images document a time before many of modernizing updates of the 1870s.
Two loose pages of handwritten notes in French from a previous owner, dated to 2005, provide some additional information.
Price: $7,500.00