Visuals of Tibet in the 1930s

When the Buddha Smiles

Tibet in the 1930s through the Eyes of a Lieutenant

Phari Dzong at the Foot of the Snowy Mountains
14,000 feet above sea level, October 1938

The Gyantse Fortress at 14,000 feet above sea level

Gyantse Dzong, June 1939

Tensing, Sikkim-based Agent, Clerk and Interpreter

Presider of the Gyantse Monastery Ritual Dance, 1939

Masked Dancer of Gyantse

Photography: Lieut.Col. Fleming Mackenzie  
Source: Royal Asiatic Society  
Compiled and Edited by: Yang Mao

81 black and white photographs

 

Between 1938 and 1939, Lieutenant Fleming Mackenzie of the 1st Battalion, 15th Punjab Regiment, Indian Army, took 81 black and white photographs while escorting a trade mission in Tibet.

These photographs, donated by his daughter Ann O'Neill to the Royal Asiatic Society Archives in 2022, document the natural landscapes, cultural practices, and historical events of Tibet and Sikkim.

D.G. Sundius Smith and Fleming, 1939

These photographs, spanning over eighty years, remain as clear as yesterday. They are not merely ancillary records of a military mission but serve as a window, allowing us to glimpse the social landscape and human spirit of Tibet during that era. Mackenzie's lens was calm and sincere—his imagery is both a testimony to a segment of history and a silent tribute.

Now, please join us in following these visuals into this sealed chapter of visual memory.

Mackenzie's Winter Tibetan Robe, Photographed in Gyantse

Figures and Portraits

Group Photo in Yadong

Group photo of six individuals, including Subedar Warryam Singh of the 1st Battalion, 15th Punjab Regiment, and members of A Company, taken in the Amo Chu River Valley at an altitude of 10,000 feet. The photograph features three women (two Europeans) and three men.

Fleming Mackenzie and his Sikh orderly

Group photo of Mackenzie and a Sikh orderly at Tang La Pass (15,200 feet), with Kanchenjunga and the distant Parilung Mountains in the background.

Mackenzie with his horses Sassa and Lindy

Displaying the saddle cloth designed by Mackenzie for polo matches, photographed in Gyantse, January 1939.

Group photo of members of the German expedition

A group photo of members of the German expedition, including Ernst Schäfer, with Mackenzie and others. Mackenzie noted on the back, "Keeping distance from the Germans," taken in January 1939.

Lhasa noble Phukong and his wife Lacham Kusho

A group photo of the noble couple and their seven-year-old son, among others, taken in 1939.

Professor Giuseppe Tucci and his party

Professor Giuseppe Tucci, Italian Tibetologist, his wife Julia Tucci, and an Italian secretary, photographed in Gyantse in 1939.

Mackenzie's attendant Lobsang with his wife and child, 1939.

Nature and Architecture

 

Roadside Buddha Statue
Altitude 14,000 feet, 1939

"Thousand Buddhas" on a Wall
Lhasa, 1939

View of Lhasa from the Yarlung Tsangpo River
1939

 

Yadong Christian Cemetery  
Burial site of Bertie Warren, 1939

Crossing the Yarlung Tsangpo River on a yak-hide boat  
On the way from Gyantse to Lhasa, 1938

Yak-hide boat on the Niangqu River, January 1939

Niangqu River Flood  
The bridge over the Niangqu River in Gyantse was destroyed by flooding, with both bridges washed away in 1950.

Tibetan visitor in Lhasa  
His rifle barrel is adorned with red wool symbolizing flames, 1939

Wooden boat on the Yarlung Tsangpo River  
Heading to Lhasa, 1936

1938 Mount Everest Expedition Passport

Held by two officials, the taller one is Sonaw, private secretary to the Sikkim official.

Lady and gentleman in front of a coracle

Culture and Rituals

Masked Dancers in Gyantse, February 1939

Black Hat Dancers in Gyantse, February 1939

New Year Dancers at the Potala Palace, 1936

Black Hat Dance performance, Gyantse, February 18, 1939

Performance by itinerant artists in Lhasa, January 1939

Sikkimese Monks and Musicians, September 1946

Noble Lady in Formal Attire, 1938

Messenger wearing a Mongolian hat

Mackenzie's laborers on the way to Lhasa

En route to Lhasa, 1938