Black and white reminiscences

Everybody in the room held their breath.

On the table lay an oblong century-old teak box within which 60 fragile glass plate negatives stood in a neat row. Specially attired for the occasion, Sumongkol Suahem, who works as part of the documentary preservation team at the National Archives of Thailand (NAT), gingerly lifted one of them with gloved hands and let it hover over a light source to reveal a snapshot of history captured for posterity with astonishing clarity.

It was indeed a rare visual treat. Normally kept in a rather forbidding, climate-controlled storage room, the treasured glass plate negatives in the teak box, which represent just a fraction of the enormous collection in the care of NAT since 1977, are so zealously safeguarded that even the archives' director, Nitcha Jariyasetkarn remarked in humour: "I don't usually get to see them!"

Dating from 1855 to 1935, the collection of over 35,000 glass plate negatives and some 50,000 prints -- originally from the private collections of King Chulalongkorn, King Vajiravudh and Prince Damrong Rajanubhab -- had once been kept at the Phra Vajirayana Royal Library, the forerunner of today's National Library of Thailand. The collection covers such an extensive time period that some of the photos encapsulate entire human lifespans. Consider, for example, the photo of Prince Asdang Dejavudh (1889–1924), son of King Chulalongkorn and Queen Saovabha Phongsri, as a playful young boy.

King Chulalongkorn meets Otto von Bismarck in Hamburg, in 1897. National Archives of Thailand

Poignantly, another photo in the collection documents the crematorium of the same prince, who would succumb to kidney disease at the age of 35.

Nitcha explained that many of the photos form a crucial body of evidence of how ceremonies such as royal funerals and royal barge processions were conducted in the past, thereby contributing to the continuity of royal traditions to present day.

Other photos provide a vivid record of King Chulalongkorn's historic trip to Europe in 1897 during which he secured audiences with Otto von Bismarck and Tsar Nicholas II in a strategic manoeuvre to cultivate diplomatic relations and counter the colonial ambitions of Britain and France.

The photos in the royal collection not only chronicle special occasions of national and international significance but they offer an intimate glimpse into everyday palace life. At a time when conservative courtiers harboured superstitions that photography would capture their souls and cause untimely death, King Mongkut (reign 1851–1868) and the succeeding King Chulalongkorn (reign 1868–1910) enthusiastically embraced the relatively new technology. According to Savitri Suwansathit, vice-chair of the Thai National Committee on the Memory of the World Programme of Unesco, King Chulalongkorn encouraged the ladies of the court to practise photography and five consorts from the Bunnag family (known collectively as Chaochom Kok Aw) would come to be especially admired for their photographic skills and artistry.

One extraordinary photo of King Chulalongkorn in his later years shows him pensively looking out of the window at Vimanmek Mansion. In a captivating contrast to formal portrayals of the monarch in full royal regalia, the photo makes the viewer almost feel like an intruder on a rarely witnessed moment of private reflection.

Saphan Han was rebuilt during the reign of King Chulalongkorn. National Archives of Thailand

The collection also contains some spectacular visual records of various sites in the historic heart of Bangkok. For instance, Saphan Han (literally, turn bridge) was originally built during the reign of King Phutthayotfa Chulalok (1782–1809), and indeed a section of it would rotate to allow oversized vessels to pass unimpeded. The bridge subsequently underwent several reincarnations. Most notably, at King Chulalongkorn's behest, Saphan Han was newly designed to incorporate features from two iconic bridges in Italy -- the bowed expanse of the Rialto Bridge in Venice and shops lining the Ponte Vecchio in Florence.

Today, visitors strolling along the Ong Ang Canal -- revitalised in 2019 and since promoted as a tourist attraction -- can casually cross Saphan Han in its comparatively modest current guise with little if any inkling of the bridge's former glory.

Constructed contemporaneously with the Ong Ang Canal in 1783, the Maha Nak Canal begins its course just north of the towering Golden Mount of Wat Saket.

Saphan Han late last year. UNESCO/Chairat Chongvattanakij

We can see that the Maha Nak Canal of bygone days was a key thoroughfare bustling with commercial activity.

Today, the Maha Nak-Saen Saep route still serves as an essential transportation artery for tens of thousands of commuters every day. Walking along the Maha Nak Canal during morning rush hour, one can witness express boats zipping by in both directions with deafening frequency.

Another noteworthy photo from the royal collection shows us the newly opened Sala Chalermkrung Royal Theatre in 1933, when electric trams still operated along Charoen Krung Road.

Originally a movie theatre, Sala Chalermkrung has evolved into a renowned venue for performances of the masked dance drama known as khon, which was inscribed on Unesco's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2018.

One of Bangkok's most recognisable tourist attractions today, the Giant Swing in front of Wat Suthat was historically the site of the swing ceremony performed as part of the Triyampawai Tripawai, the Hindu ritual in praise of Shiva and Vishnu. Nevertheless, serious injuries and fatal accidents led to the prohibition of the risky spectacle during the reign of King Prajadhipok.

Enriched with the awareness of this historical context and stunningly preserved in the photo above as an arrested moment of death-defying import, one can visit the Giant Swing today with a deeper appreciation of its place in the cultural life of Bangkok.

Glass plate negative of Phra Thinang Aisawan Thiphya-art. UNESCO/Chanchana Wongot

Without such exceptional snapshots of history, our collective memory and understanding of how the past connects to the present would be considerably impoverished. In recognition of the significance of this heritage -- both in regard to its content as well as the carrier of said content (namely, glass plates as a historic capture medium preceding the advent of photographic film) -- the Royal Photographic Glass Plate Negatives and Original Prints Collection was inscribed on Unesco's Memory of the World International Register in 2017.

In keeping with the aims of Unesco's Memory of the World programme, Nitcha said that the entire royal collection has been scanned and catalogued in an effort to improve accessibility, while also safeguarding the original documents.

In addition, NAT has been raising awareness about heritage by organising exhibitions (one of which is still available in an engaging virtual format) and publishing two books of captioned photos from the royal collection thus far.

Sumongkol Suahem with a glass plate negative. UNESCO/Chanchana Wongot

Nitcha noted that it is not always clear what person, place, or event is being shown in certain photos, so NAT assembled a committee of experts from various fields to determine the most informative captions for them. In the near future, NAT plans to launch a digital platform for crowdsourcing inputs from the public, subject to expert verification, to enrich and expedite the captioning process.

With its staggering range of subject matter conveyed through the impactful immediacy of the visual medium, the Royal Photographic Collection introduces the curious viewer to a world of intriguing stories, wherein the relative brevity of an individual's life is foregrounded against larger themes that reflect the persistence of collective human efforts across the generations to propel the social, economic, and cultural development of a nation dynamically in transition.