Research & Article

In  conjunction  with  the  exhibition  of  the  same  name  held  at  the  National  Gallery Bangkok from 9 January to 28 February 2015, I am delighted, on behalf of River Books and Wellcome Library, London, to be able to share with readers of this edition of JSS a few of the impressive and insightful photographs of Siam taken by the renowned Scottish photographer, John Thomson, 150 years ago. The exhibition was the first time that these photos had ever been displayed together, yet alone in Thailand. To our delight and surprise, the exhibition certainly caught the imagination of the general public, with more than 10,000 visitors during the first month. Perhaps it  is  not  that  much  of  a  surprise,  given  the  remarkably  crisp  detail  of  the  prints,  taken from the original glass negatives, together with the fascinating content of each photo. I had the pleasure of trying to decipher the location of many of Thomson’s scenic photographs and providing a comparison to the landscapes of today; and this seems to have fascinated the public, harking back to a simpler, less congested urban environment. Together with Thomson’s superb portraits, these pictures thus remind us of an era that is long gone, but thankfully, now not forgotten.

In  conjunction  with  the  exhibition  of  the  same  name  held  at  the  National  Gallery Bangkok from 9 January to 28 February 2015, I am delighted, on behalf of River Books and Wellcome Library, London, to be able to share with readers of this edition of JSS a few of the impressive and insightful photographs of Siam taken by the renowned Scottish photographer, John Thomson, 150 years ago. The exhibition was the first time that these photos had ever been displayed together, yet alone in Thailand. To our delight and surprise, the exhibition certainly caught the imagination of the general public, with more than 10,000 visitors during the first month. Perhaps it  is  not  that  much  of  a  surprise,  given  the  remarkably  crisp  detail  of  the  prints,  taken from the original glass negatives, together with the fascinating content of each photo. I had the pleasure of trying to decipher the location of many of Thomson’s scenic photographs and providing a comparison to the landscapes of today; and this seems to have fascinated the public, harking back to a simpler, less congested urban environment. Together with Thomson’s superb portraits, these pictures thus remind us of an era that is long gone, but thankfully, now not forgotten.

The  photographs  by  John  Thomson  in  the  following  pages  are  provided  courtesy of the Wellcome Library, London and River Books, Bangkok.