Description:

Title, place and date (July 56) in ink, and possibly the photographer's name, which appears to be unreadable. The photographs were in an album of similar prints, including panoramas of Egypt, which indicate someone like James Graham, although there is currently no research that indicates Graham was in India. Lucknow was photographed extensively starting in 1858 after the Mutiny of 1857, but this pre-Mutiny documentation of the city is a great rarety, perhaps among the very first photographs of this area. The photo shows the Chhota Imambara in Lucknow. The third Nawab of Avadh, Muhammad Ali Shah built this imposing structure in 1840. The real name of this structure is Husainabad Imambada. The interior of this magnificent building has chandeliers from Belgium, lamp shades and other decorative pieces, which might have cost a fortune in those days. The decorations inside the building are ravishingly beautiful. Once a Prince from Russia said that this was the Kremlin of India. Inside the Imambara are the tombs of Ali Shah and his mother. Enclosed in the structure is the Royal bath or the 'Sahi Hammam'. The use of marble and arches in constructing buildings on both sides of the courtyard has prompted comparisons to the architecture of the Taj Mahal. The Imambara also houses the silver throne of Muhamad Ali Shah.

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