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G R Lambert and Co (fl. 1875-1919) (photographers)

 Organization

Dates

  • Existence: fl. 1875 - 1919

Biography

G.R. Lambert, from Dresden, arrived in Singapore in 1875. According to Wright, Lambert established a photographic studio in 1875 (Wright 1908). However, Lambert's firm was not advertised in the 'Singapore directory for the Straits Settlements' until 1878. In 1878 it had premises in Orchard Road and was possibly connected with the Lamberts who ran the Singapore Carriage Works and Livery Stables. In 1885 Lambert left the Straits Settlement. From 1885-1905 the firm was managed by Alexander Koch. There was also a branch in Deli, Sumatra, run by H. Stafhell in the mid-1880s and a branch in Kuala Lumpur. A Bangkok branch was run by C Frichas circa 1895. The firm's head office was at Gresham House, Battery Road in the 1890s. The firm was run by H. Thomas Jensen of Reutlinger's, Paris from 1905. G.R. Lambert and Co. were photographers by appointment to the King of Siam and the Sultan of Johore. They also photographed the Federal Conferences of 1896 and 1903 and the visit of Sir John Anderson to Kelantan in 1909. The company was the largest business in the Malay Peninsula. The firm possibly wound up during the First World War.

Wright wrote: 'Lambert has maintained a high reputation for artistic portraiture, and of landscapes they have one of the finest collections in the east, comprising about three thousand subjects relating to Siam, Singapore, Borneo, Malaya and China. An extensive trade is done in picture postcards, the turnover being about quarter of a million cards a year. A large stock of apparatus for amateurs is always kept in hand' (1908).

The firm also employed:

1885: C. Petersen, H. Schübert, Miss Besagoiti, T.A. (or J.A.) Rodrigues. 1901: R. Herbst, H.V. Katte, C. Warleberg, A Beattie. 1910: O. Schwemer (Chairman), H.L. Coghlan, W. Ewald, S. Gauder, R. Matsunaga.

Sources:

Falconer, J (1987), 'A vision of the past : a history of early photography in Singapore and Malaya : the photographs of G.R. Lambert and Co., 1880-1910'. Singapore: Times Editions.

Wright, Arnold and Cartwright, H.A. ed. (1907), 'Twentieth century impressions of British Malaya: its history, people, commerce, industries, and resources'. London.

Found in 105 Collections and/or Records:

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 Item

The famous growing mango tree [rest of caption illegible], 1890 - 1899

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 1/39
Scope and Contents

268 x 208 mm. A studio photograph showing two Indian men and a boy seated on the ground with the equipment for the mango trick laid out before them; these consist of woven baskets and the cloth beneath which the mango tree appears to grow in the space of a few minutes.

Dates: 1890 - 1899
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

The Inner Roads, Penang, 1880 - 1889

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 2/8
Scope and Contents

270 x 209 mm. A view looking along the Inner Roads, with steamers and numerous smaller sailing vessels at anchor.

Dates: 1880 - 1889
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

The mouth of S[inga]pore River, 1890 - 1899

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 1/92
Scope and Contents

267 x 206 mm. A view looking out towards the harbour from the Cavenagh Bridge with sampans loaded with goods entering the river from the port. A photograph taken before the construction of the Anderson Bridge in 1910.

Dates: 1890 - 1899
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

The railway line [Port Dickson, circa 1900], 1900

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 5/2
Scope and Contents

360 x 282 mm. A view looking along the line which crosses a causeway before running into the station in the background. The 25 miles line from Seremban to Port Dickson was commenced in 1887 and opened to traffic on July 28, 1891.

Dates: 1900
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

The Residency [Carcosa, Kuala Lumpur, circa 1900], 1900

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 4/15
Scope and Contents

355 x 269 mm. A view of Carcosa taken from a similar angle to the preceding print, but from a closer viewpoint. The first mention of the Residency in the Selangor Annual Reports is in 1897 (in C.9108 of 1898) and the following years entry (in C.9524 of 1899, p. 36) appears to indicate the completion of the building. This photograph was almost certainly taken on the same occasion as the preceding print.

Dates: 1900
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

The Residency Hill, Thaiping [i.e. Taiping] [1890s], 1890 - 1899

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 3/22
Scope and Contents

269 x 207 mm. A view looking over the town from a neighbouring hillside, with tin workings in the foreground, the houses of the town beyond and the Residency situated on a small hill overlooking the Padang.

Dates: 1890 - 1899
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

The Residency Hill, Thaiping [i.e. Taiping] [1890s], 1890 - 1899

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 3/23
Scope and Contents

269 x 207 mm.

Dates: 1890 - 1899
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

The Residency, Kuala Lumpur 1882-1883, 1882 - 1883

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 4/8
Scope and Contents

251 x 188 mm (mounted on card). A view looking up the Residency Hill towards the square, two-storey Residency buildings at the summit. The Residency, was originally the Klang Residency and was dismantled and rebuilt at Kuala Lumpur in 1881-1882.

Dates: 1882 - 1883
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

The Singapore River, 1880 - 1889

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 1/1
Scope and Contents 275 x 207 mm (mounted on card). A view from the South Boat Quay looking north-west along the Singapore River towards Fort Canning. With moored boats in the foreground and craft (blurred through movement) on the river. The hill on which Fort Canning stands was originally known as the Bukit Larangan and was a sacred burial place of the Malay Kings. It was at the summit of what came to be known as Government Hill that Raffles built a bungalow in 1823, and Government House was situated here...
Dates: 1880 - 1889
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

The Strand, Malacca, 1890 - 1899

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 2/56
Scope and Contents

270 x 209 mm. A view looking along the footbridge crossing the Malacca River near its mouth, with the ruins of St Pauls Church on the hill on the farther bank. The original parts of the church date from the early sixteenth century.

Dates: 1890 - 1899
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

The Strand, Malacca, 1890 - 1899

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 2/57
Scope and Contents

270 x 209 mm.

Dates: 1890 - 1899
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

The Sultan's Palace, Brunei [i.e. Bandar Seri Begawan], Borneo, 1880 - 1889

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/Y302B/44
Scope and Contents

272 x 206 mm. Showing a number of thatched houses raised on piles and connected by walkways. Photographer unknown, probably G.R. Lambert and Co.

Dates: 1880 - 1889
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Fonds

Tiger Hunting [Singapore]

 Fonds
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/Y30311D
Scope and Contents 270 x 205 mm. Showing a posed group of a European holding a rifle by a dead tiger, with malays standing around.In Falconer (1987), he writes of a copy of this photograph: 'This photograph must show one of the last tigers killed on the island and represents a reminder of the scourge which plagued Singapore for many years. In the earliest days of the settlement tigers, preferring the dense jungle, posed little threat to the inhabitants. The first recorded account of a tiger attack...
Dates: 1890 - 1899
Conditions Governing Access: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

Tobacco estate house, Borneo, 1880 - 1889

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/Y302B/49
Scope and Contents

273 x 207 mm. View looking across a clearing towards a group of thatched, verandahed European houses set among palm trees. Photographer unknown, probably G.R. Lambert and Co.

Dates: 1880 - 1889
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

Train on Kepong Bank, Selangor [circa 1892], 1892

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 8/2
Scope and Contents

289 x 242 mm. A view from the side of the line looking towards a ballast train halted on an embankment running through dense forest. Kepong is situated six miles north-west of Kuala Lumpur.

Dates: 1892
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

Ukiets, Borneo, 1880 - 1889

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/Y302B/48
Scope and Contents

270 x 208 mm. Group portrait of men, women and children seated on a woven mat. In Roth (1896), volume 1, page 25 this photograph is captioned 'Kanowits (?)'. Photographer unknown, probably G.R. Lambert and Co.

Dates: 1880 - 1889
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

Victoria Bridge across Perak River, circa 1899, 1899

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 3/21
Scope and Contents 285 x 210 mm (mounted on card). A view showing the Victoria Bridge, an iron girder construction mounted on stone piles, on the Ipoh-Taiping line and Enggor. The Perak River at this point is over 1000 feet wide and subject to severe flooding; original designs had allowed for a rail level 34 feet above the normal water line, but this was later changed to 40, a valuable decision in the light of the 1926 floods which brought the water level up to the bottom booms of the bridge. Preliminary...
Dates: 1899
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

View from the sea side, 1900

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 1/17
Scope and Contents

273 x 211 mm. A view from the harbour looking towards the Collyer Quay waterfront, with a sampan loaded with sacks in the foreground and boats and lighters moored near the shore. Johnston's Pier is at the extreme right of the print.

Dates: 1900
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

View of Brunei, Borneo [i.e. Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei], 1880 - 1889

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/Y302B/41
Scope and Contents

271 x 203 mm. View from a hillside looking down onto the town of Brunei which consists of thatched houses built on piles on the mudbanks of the Brunei River. Photographer unknown, probably G.R. Lambert and Co.

Dates: 1880 - 1889
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

View of Keppel Harbour, Singapore, with the tin smelting works, the largest in the world, 1890 - 1899

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 1/8
Scope and Contents

269 x 209 mm. A view from Mount Faber looking across St James and New Harbour towards Pulau Brani, with a Malay village in the foreground and the chimneys of the tin smelting works (opened in 1890) rising from behind the trees in the distance. Better known as New Harbour, it is located south- west of the town and was surveyed by Henry Keppel who in 1848 made repairs there to his ship the Meander. Its importance was largely eclipsed by the growth of the Tanjong Pagar Docks.

Dates: 1890 - 1899
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

View of Malacca, 1890 - 1899

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 2/58
Scope and Contents

270 x 208 mm. A view looking across the bay towards Malay houses on stilts lining the waterfront. With a young Malay boy seated on an English cannon dating from the early nineteenth century in the foreground.

Dates: 1890 - 1899
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

View of Penang Island, looking S.E. from near the Halfway House, Penang Hill, 1880 - 1889

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 2/7
Scope and Contents

258 x 280 mm. A view from Penang Hill (also known as Government Hill and situated west of George Town) looking south east across a valley heavily planted with coconut plantations towards another range of hills. Beyond these part of the island of Pulau Jerejak can be seen, with the mainland of Province Wellesley dimly visible in the distance.

Dates: 1880 - 1889
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

View of the church and steet scene, Thaiping [i.e. Taiping] [1890s], 1890 - 1899

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 3/24
Scope and Contents

269 x 207 mm. A view looking along a street lined with Chinese traders' stalls, with the spire of the church in the left background. This presumably All Saints Church, consecrated in 1887.

Dates: 1890 - 1899
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

View of the church and steet scene, Thaiping [i.e. Taiping] [1890s], 1890 - 1899

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 3/25
Scope and Contents

269 x 207 mm.

Dates: 1890 - 1899
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
 Item

View of the Residency, Carcosa [circa 1900], 1900

 Item
Reference Code: GBR/0115/RCS/BAM 4/14
Scope and Contents

352 x 269 mm. A view looking up from the Lake Gardens towards Carcosa, the official residence of the Resident General of the Federated Malay States. The building with its timber gables looks over the ornamental gardens and was constructed in 1897-1898 under the supervision of Charles Edwin Spooner who as State Engineer was also responsible for the Federal Government Offices. It is probable that the building was designed by A.C. Norman.

Dates: 1900
Conditions Governing Access: From the Fonds: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
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