[Queens Proclamation, Government House, Calcutta, November 1858]
1858
![[Queens Proclamation, Government House, Calcutta, November 1858] by Unknown](https://images.artheonmuseum.org/met/ph/thumb/queens-proclamation-government-house-calcutta-287611.webp)
Medium
Albumen silver print
Dimensions
Image: 17 x 23.9 cm (6 11/16 x 9 7/16 in.) Mount: 33.1 x 26.2 cm (13 1/16 x 10 5/16 in.) Image mounted vertically
Classification
Photographs
Department
Photographs
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gilman Collection, Purchase, Cynthia Hazen Polsky Gift, 2005
Accession Number
2005.100.491.1 (12)
Tags
Art Historical Context
This striking albumen silver print captures a pivotal moment in colonial history: the public reading of Queen Victoria's Proclamation at Government House in Calcutta (now Kolkata) on November 1, 1858. The image depicts the grand neoclassical facade of the building amid a dense crowd of British officials, soldiers, and locals, underscoring the formal pomp of empire. Produced just a year after the Indian Rebellion of 1857, the proclamation marked the end of East India Company rule, transferring governance of India directly to the British Crown and promising religious tolerance, property rights, ...
About the Artist
Unknown
The artist designated as "Unknown" in our virtual museum's collection exemplifies a poignant chapter in art history: creators whose identities have faded into obscurity despite the enduring power of their work. With only one known artwork attributed to them in our holdings, this figure represents countless anonymous hands that shaped visual culture across centuries. Museums worldwide, including th...