Studio portrait album of the royal family in Yogyakarta.

Inside this album are 17 albumen photographs of Hamengku Buwana VII, his crown prince son, two of his other sons, one of his wives, and seven of his daughters. 

This is a studio portrait of Sultan Hamengku Buwana VII made by Kassian Cephas (January 15, 1845 in Yogyakarta - November 16, 1912 in Yogyakarta). He was the court photographer from 1871 and lived in the Lodji Ketjil Wetan, the current Jalan Mayor Suryotomo. There was also his workshop. It is not certain whether this photo was taken in Cephas' studio or whether he took his studio material to the Kraton, to take pictures of the Sultan's relatives there.

We suspect it happened in the Kraton. Cephas' studio was described as humble and it seemed unlikely that the royal family would go to a simple studio to wait their turn for the photo. Such portraits were mainly made to radiate status and prestige, not to reveal a personal aspect of the person portrayed.

Contact us to receive images of all 17 photographs and the album at:  info@antiquemapsindoensia.com