ARCHIVE OF FIVE (5) PHOTOGRAPH ALBUMS WITH 438 VERNACULAR PHOTOS BY PERCY WILLIAM MAY: SIAM, MALAYSIA, INDONESIA & SINGAPORE, 1910-1921 by Siam & Southeast Asia - 1910

1910. Original photograph albums. The five cloth photograph albums measure approx. 9 ¾" x 11 ¼", and each contains ten leaves of heavy stock, with four spaces for photos on both sides. The photographs measure approx. 3" x 4" and are mounted neatly behind the window mounts. Pasted to the inside front cover of each album is a detailed typed/mimeographed description of each photo, most noting the date when taken. These descriptions were prepared by Mr. May's wife, Emma Amelia (nee Burgess), who also added her manuscript additions to most sheets, written in a tiny hand. The edges of several of the album covers show mottling, but the photographs are in very good to fine condition, apart from some mild age-toning on some of them. May represented the photographic-paper trade for a British company in Siam. His regular business circuit from 1910-1921 includes time in Siam, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore, with most of these photographs taken in Bangkok, Batavia, Penang, Ipoh, Kuala Lumpur and Medan, plus additional views made at less well-known locations, e.g. Soerbaia, Semarang, Garoet, etc. The photos of Siam in particular illustrate an important period in that country's history. They begin during the final days of the rule of the modernizing, Western-educated (by Anna Leonowens) King Chulalongkorn and continue into the rule of his son Rama VI. Although in 1917 Siam declared war on Germany and Austro-Hungary and played a token role in WWI-enough to earn a place at the Versailles Peace Conference--this continued to be a time of modernization and relative prosperity in the country. The photographs, for example, depict the "new railway" from Bangkok to Penang as well as the new railway station (Album 4) and the bustling Wat Poh Fair which took place in Bangkok April 3-7, 1919 (which occupies 43 photos in Album 4). Other noteworthy events include the elaborate cremation of King Chulalongkorn (March 16-19, 1911) and a few shots of Bangkok's first aviation show (both in Album 1).~~ In addition to the striking vistas of beaches, jungles, waterways, and natural wonders including volcanoes, the albums also contain many scenes of street- and canal-life as well as views of prominent buildings of the day (e.g., temples in various countries, the Mosque at Medan-Deli in Sumatra, Bangkok's Old Russian Legation building and its tennis courts, the "mess hall" at Hong Kong Bank Lane, etc. There are also many interior and exterior shots of the hotels in the countries where Percy & Emma regularly stayed, including the Raffles Hotel (Penang), Oriental Hotel (Bangkok), Empire Hotel (Kuala Lumpur), Grand Hotel (Ipoh), the Grand Hotel at Djocjakarta, and the Hotel der Nederlanden (Batavia). A number of shots include other Europeans as well as the Mays, most of them apparently fellow-employees. The final album has scenes on the ocean-voyage home (Colombo, the Suez Canal, etc.), and scenes "back home" in England, including London and views in rural Devon. ~~ Album #1: 10 leaves (20 pages) 80 photographs + small envelope containing 8 more, labeled on verso. September, 1910-November, 1911. Includes stays in Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur, Port Swettenham-now Port Klang--, Ipoh, Penang), Sept-Oct. 1910 and July-August, 1911; Siam (Bangkok), October 1910-June, 1911; Singapore, June 1911; and Indonesia (Medan in Sumatra, Batavia in Java), August-Sept., 1911; also a few in envelope, taken near Bangkok, Nov.-Dec., 1911. The most noteworthy events recorded in this album are the cremation of King Chulalongkorn of Siam at "Premaine Ground" in Bangkok (March 16-19, 1911), including 5 crowd scenes and 6 shots "taken after the Cremation and before start of demolition of building erected for the Cremation"; a celebration in Singapore of the Coronation of King George V of England (June, 1911); the celebration of Queen Wilhelmina (of the Netherlands)'s birthday (Aug., 1911) in Medan, Sumatra; and 2 photos of "Bangkok's first aviation show" at the Sports Club in Bangkok (Jan., 1911), featuring a "Farman Biplane". There are also several candids of the photographer's friends and fellow-employees, photographed "at the mess" at Hong Kong Bank Lane, Bangkok, including "Mr. and Mrs. King, Lonsdale, Davy, Hertzka, Pagden and self". Also here are several Bangkok street scenes of buildings and canals with boatmen, taken "outside" the same "mess" hall. In addition to views taken from shipboard and jungle scenes, there are interior and exterior photos of hotels where the Mays stayed, including the Raffles Hotel (Penang), Empire Hotel (Kuala Lumpur), Grand Hotel (Ipoh), Hotel Beau Sejour in Lembang; the Hotel Villa Dolce and its grounds in Garoet, Hotel Beau Sejour in Lembang, the Oranje Hotel at Soerbaia, and the Hotel der Nederlanden (Batavia). ~~ Album #2: 74 photographs, Spring 1914 to early 1915. Includes stays in Siam (Bangkok), spring 1914 and "end 1914-early 1915"; Malaysia (Penang, May-June, 1914, and Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh, Sept. 1914); Indonesia (Batavia, Buitenzorg, Soekaboemi, Soerkarta, Boroboedoer, and Tosari with Tengger Village (June-July, 1914); and Singapore (Oct. 1914). Included are views of: Penang's St. George Church, Ayer Etam Temple, Post Office, Council Chamber, and Javasche Bank; the Chenderiang Falls in Kuala Lumpur, including shots with a group of European men and women; Batavia's Hotel des Indes and Dutch Protestant Church; Botanical Garden scenes at Buitenzorg, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore; views of Javanese towns with rice field, temple, mountains, buildings, horse-drawn carriage, volcanoes including Bromo, Monegal Pass, etc., many shots including one or two European women in white hats and men in topees; and 2 views of Ipoh's "white 'marble' roads" complete with auto, and one of the Grand Hotel there. Bangkok photographs include several taken at the Old Russian Legation, including the tennis courts and other buildings, the canals and local boatmen, and various European men and women posed in Bangkok. ~~ Album #3: 79 photographs, August-September 1916. Opens with 6 photos of Bangkok's Wat Chen Temple; then all but one of the remaining photos depict scenes in Indonesia, most taken in various parts of Java. These include 6 photos of the Hotel der Nederlanden in Batavia; the Hotel Beau Sejour in Lembang; the Hotel Villa Dolce and its grounds in Garoet; plus 8 views of the volcano Papandajan and 12 more of Lake Bagendet and the "new South coast road" near that town; 3 views of Soekaboemi; shots at Djocjakarta including the Grand Hotel, three street scenes with horse-drawn carriages and eight shots of the "water castle"; three scenes including a smoking volcano at Soerakarta and the Oranje Hotel at Soerbaia; views, including European woman on horseback, at Tosari, with two shots of a visit to the nearby village of Ngadiwono; then several street/building scenes in Semarang, as well as views taken on the town's outskirts, and jungle and water views in Cheribor. The last pages include 6 shots of the Mosque at Medan-Deli, Sumatra. The final photo from 1917 is a scene "at the foot of the Taipeng Hills, Perak (Malaysia). ~~ Album #4. 79 photographs, December,1918 to August, 1919. The majority of photographs in this album were taken in Bangkok, including a picture of the British Red Cross Fair at Saranom Gardens (December 1918). There are fully 43 photos of the Wat Poh Fair, April 3-7, 1919. Resembling a street fair, the pictures show booths and tents, many Siamese customers and passersby of both sexes, children, and even a few soldiers. There are also several views of Bangkok temples or wats, a klong with an inhabited houseboat, and interior and exterior views of the Oriental Hotel. By May, the photographer and his wife are on the move, and there are several views taken during their journey "over the new railway Bangkok-Penang", including a shot of the new railway station and several views of Ipoh's "marble cliffs" and the city's Railway Hotel. The album ends with views of Lembang, Java, and the nearby volcano Tangkoeban Prahoe, as well as several interior and exterior shots of the Hotel der Nederlanden in Batavia (Sept. 1919). ~~ Album #5. 74 photos in toto. August, 1920-July, 1921. This album opens with the arrival in Bangkok of "H.M.S. Phra Ruang (scout cruiser)" in August, 1920. The remaining Bangkok views are interiors of the Oriental Hotel, with several of parrots and parakeets perched on hotel furniture. From January, 1921 through March, the photographs record the journey via Southern railway to Penang, including views of flooded areas passed on the train, the Tung Song Rest House, and views of Medan and Penang, mostly taken from shipboard "on way through, homeward bound." Next come scenes taken on the April, 1921, ocean voyage to England, including views of Colombo (beaches, street scene, ships at sea), Suez (including several during passage through the Suez Canal) and a street scene at Port Said, the Straits of Messina, a street scene at Marseilles, and the Rock of Gibraltar viewed from the ship.The Percy & Emma arrive in London on April 28, 1921, and we see views (April-June) of the Kenilworth Hotel, the "S.B. Ltd. H. offices" and Ludgate Circus. The album concludes with outdoor views "round Lynton and Lynmouth," two villages on the north coast of Devon, now within Exmoor National Park, and Clovelly, a scenic village also in Devon.