The Scots: A Photohistory - Hardcover

MacKinnon, Murray; Oram, Richard

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0500511357 ISBN 13: 9780500511350

Publisher: Thames & Hudson, 2003

Synopsis

A selection of Book-of-the-Month Club

In the decade after 1839, when Louis Daguerre revealed his photographic process to the world, Scotland became enamored of the new art. Over the next century, Scottish photographers captured a stunning visual record of their land and its people, their mixed fortunes, hopes, and aspirations. Their achievementsnever before collected together so tellinglydocument a century of profound contrasts, of division, upheaval, and change that recast forever the character of Scotland. Here are the triumphs of self-confident Scotlandthe completion of the Forth Bridge and the stream of vessels that slid down the slipways of the Clyde to bind together a far-flung empirebut also its injustices, the story of the urban and rural poor, and the evictions that drove people from the land to seek work in the cities or renewed hope in emigration to the New World. Scotland has always been the country of the "lad o' pairts," the youth from the unpromising, impoverished, often rural background who, with the help of parental self-sacrifice and ambition, personal determination and strength of character, progressesoften as an emigrant to North Americato great things. Gordon Highlanders drinking whisky from enamel buckets in the New Year celebrations of 1890; the caves of Staffa and their associations with the mythical Celtic hero, Finigal; the grandeur of Edinburgh Castle; a portrait of John Logie Baird, Scottish scientist-hero and inventor of the television; the golfers of Scotscraig a mere decade after the beginning of photography; settlers overseas in Colorado; salmon-netting on the River Oykelthis enthralling visual history brings the country to life not only for everyone of Scottish origin, but equally for everyone who has enjoyed the rich character and landscape of this beguiling nation. 236 illustrations in color and duotone.

About this title

About the Author

Murray MacKinnon’s long love affair with photography and what it reveals about his native Scotland goes back over forty years to his first purchase of a vintage camera and photo album in a Glasgow auction room.

Richard Oram’s publications include Scotland’s Kings and Queens.

From Publishers Weekly

MacKinnon and Oram's collection of photographs taken in the camera's early years is at once a history of a place, a people and an era. The 1839 invention of photography piqued many Scots' interest, and they set to work documenting their country and its inhabitants. Scotland native MacKinnon and History Scotland managing editor Oram present readers with 236 images, most of which were taken in the late 19th century. The sepia-toned and black-and-white images depict, among other things, coastal and rural life, Edinburgh street scenes, factory working conditions, and leisure activities, such as rugby and beachgoing. The variety of photographs-portraits, landscapes and candid shots of Scots going about their everyday lives-paired with the enlightening captions, which often explain the photographs' circumstances or significance, make this an informative and engrossing work for anyone interested in the northern isle.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Thames & Hudson
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0500511357
• ISBN 13: 9780500511350
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 224