The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 13, 2025

Sinhalese Man

c. 1880s

Scowen & Co.

(British, active Ceylon, 1876–1895)

or Skeen & Co.

(British, active 1860–1920)
India, 19th century
albumen print
Image: 14.1 x 9.1 cm (5 9/16 x 3 9/16 in.); Paper: 14.1 x 9.4 cm (5 9/16 x 3 11/16 in.)
Purchase from the Karl B. Goldfield Trust 2018.221
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

Formally posed in a studio in profile, rather like a specimen, the image is more likely an anthropological study than a commissioned portrait.

Description

The gentleman sports a Western jacket and shirt, but his distinctive hairstyle identifies him as Sinhalese, a people originally from northern India who now form the majority of the population of Sri Lanka.
  • Bruno Tatarin, Photovintagefrance, Lorraine, France
    September 4, 2018
    the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • {{cite web|title=Sinhalese Man|url=false|author=Scowen & Co., Skeen & Co.|year=c. 1880s|access-date=13 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2018.221