Men of Elephant Battery, Jhansi (verso)
1884
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1884
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
You see a group of Indian soldiers in crisp uniforms standing beside three small cannons pulled by elephants. This photo is rare for its time—most pictures of British India show only the colonizers. Here, the focus is on local troops who served the empire, dressed in Western-style gear but still linked to the elephants that carried their weapons. The men look straight at the camera, giving them a quiet dignity. To see more photos like this, look up subject: india.
