Photograph in Dr. Isaac Groneman’s ‘Candi Prambanan in Central Java’

The 8^th-century Hindu temple of Prambanan is the subject of this photograph. We see a middle-distance depiction of architectural features within the overall shape of the temple structure. The print is evenly lit and sharply focused, reflecting its purpose as an illustration reproduced in an archaeologist’s book.

Kassian Cephas is celebrated as the first Indonesian to become a professional photographer. Also a painter, he was trained under the patronage of the Javanese Sultan Hamengkubuwana VI (r. 1855–1877). He was commissioned by his friend Isaac Groneman— who also served as the court physician—to contribute photographic illustrations for several books.