251 •(MARTIN CHAMBI)
Album with 118 photographs, 16 of which are attributed to Martín Chambi (1891-1973), depicting the city and region of Cusco, Peru. Also with numerous scenes of Bolivia, Ecuador, Honduras, and Guatemala.
Neatly compiled and descriptively captioned, the album documents spectacles of significant architecture and native Andean culture, apparently experienced during the Latin American travels of Mr. Herbert Heard Evans (1880-1962), the Assistant Superintendent of the Mechanical Division of the Panama Canal from 1919 to 1942. The album predominantly features views of Peru, with the majority of photographs taken in and around Cusco, the location of Martín Chambi's studio. Eleven of these architectural studies are attributed to Chambi and highlight interior and exterior details of ornate cathedrals and other buildings of historic import. Most impressively included are the awe-inspiring depictions of sacred lands and archeological ruins of the Incan people at Macchu Picchu, Saqsayhuaman, Qenko, and Ollantaytambo (five attributed to Chambi). Also present in the album are photographs of Lake Atitlan, Quirigua, Antigua, Copan, Quito, Lima, and La Paz. Silver prints, the images measuring approximately 3x2 to 6½x9 inches (7.6x5.1 to 16.5x22.9 cm.), mounted recto only to yellow pages, nearly all pages with a heading, location, and extensively well-informed captions, in ink. 4to, black leatherette, with Evans' affixed ownership label; brass pin binding. 1920s
WITH--A companion album compiling 87 snapshots and photo-postcards collected and taken throughout Evans' travels in Mexico, with images of monuments, architecture, and the flora of Mexico City, Papantla, Chiapas, and the region of Oaxaca. Silver prints, the images measuring 3½x5½ inches (8.9x13.9 cm.), and slightly smaller; matching presentation and binding. Late 1920s

[6,000/9,000]

A photograph in this lot was featured in an album with 50 photographs by Martín Chambi, sold at Swann Galleries' Sale 2426, Lot 101, in 2016. The other photographs, which are attributed to Chambi, are consistent with this print in quality, size, and photographic style.

Herbert Heard Evans (1880-1962) was a naval veteran of the Spanish American War, stationed almost exclusively in South America. In 1919 he became Assistant Superintendent in Panama, a post he held for 23 years. During his station, Evans and his wife explored their life-long passion for Latin American history, traveling extensively through South America and amassing an impressive collection of books (now held at Smith College) and textiles (previously donated to the Metropolitan Museum of Art).

Martín Chambi (1891-1973) is regarded as a pioneering photographer and documentarian of Andean heritage. He opened the doors to his Cusco studio in 1920, beginning an illustrious career as a successful photographer, turning his camera both on the elite members of society and the indigenous peoples whose ancestors built Cusco. In many ways, Chambi can be considered an archivist, given his democratic focus on diverse aspects of the Peruvian culture, both past and present.