One Of The Oldest Photos Of The Himalayas, From 1867
The history of Himalayan photography is filled with remarkable milestones. But few are as extraordinary as this rare 1870 photograph, believed to be one of the oldest known images of what looks like Mount Trisul.
The picture was taken by John Edward Sache, a British photographer who worked extensively across Northern India during colonial times. Although Sache is not as widely celebrated as contemporaries like Samuel Bourne or Felice Beato. He played a significant role in documenting landscapes, architecture, and daily life during the 19th century.
Sache arrived in the Indian subcontinent in the late 1860s, entering a rapidly growing field of professional photography. British India had a growing demand for photographs, both for administrative purposes and for public curiosity in Europe.
Over the course of his career, he established multiple studios in India. His portfolio expanded to include portraits, architectural photography, and particularly landscapes. One of which appears to be this incredibly early photograph of Mount Trisul.
This 1867 image was taken during one of Sache’s Himalayan expeditions. The photograph includes a sweeping landscape view, and a close-up from the same photo reveals what is likely the outline of Mount Trisul. This was long before the age of advanced lenses and high-altitude expeditions.
Unlike today’s crystal-clear telephoto images, the mountain is only faintly visible. This is because photographic technology at the time was extremely primitive.
After the Anglo-Nepalese War (1814–1816), the British Survey of India began mapping the Himalayan frontier.
Trisul appears on early Survey of India maps under its local name. So in Western/geographic terms, it was “recognized” in the early 1800s. Click the first image to enlarge.
Did you know – Trisul I (7,120 m) became the first mountain over 7,000 metres to be climbed in world history. It was summited in 1907 by Tom Longstaff, an early Himalayan explorer, along with noted Gurkha climbers.
Past posts – Oil Painting of Bunch of Roses British India, 1940., Custom House At Ballard Pier Bombay, 1918 Postcard., First Non-Stop Flight From England To India, 1929 Newspaper Clip., 1909 Old Book – Kashmir By Sir Francis Younghusband
