Postcard by an unidentified publisher - Princes Street,West End

Comments

from

Stephen McMahon

Munich, Germany

Thank you to Stephen McMahon for sending me the photograph above.

Stephen wrote:

Photo

"Here is a photo of:

- my father, John McMahon (the smaller boy) and

- his brother, Richard (Dick) McMahon.

My father looks about a year to 15 months old, so the photo must have been taken in late-1913.

It's interesting to see:

- Princes Street

- The Scott Monument

- TheNorth British Hotel

- The Royal Scottish Academy

not to mention the donkey cart. The traffic policeman at the crossing of the Mound onto Princes Street and into Hanover Street is very clever, as is the lady crossing Princes Street and looking straight into the shot. It looks like the backdrop was painted from a photograph that someone took."

Postcard

"The photo here was a postcard, unfortunately without any indication on the rear as to who took the photo and where it was taken. My grandmother sent it to her sister in Liverpool.

Does anyone know of any Edinburgh photographer who could have had such a backdrop - not to mention the stuffed donkey?"

Stephen McMahon, Munich, Germany: November 19, 2012

Stuffed Donkeys

I've seen a few photographs with stuffed donkeys, but none of them has had a Princes Street backdrop.

Here is a late-19th century cabinet prints from the studio of Philip E Low, Portobello featuring a donkey:

Here is an early-20th century postcard from Morrison's studio, Edinburgh, featuring what appears to be a donkey in sheep's clothing:

Reply to Stephen

If you can suggest which photographer might have taken the photo at the top of this page

please email me, then I'll give you Stephen McMahon's email address and you will be able to send your message to him.

Thank you.

Peter Stubbs, Edinburgh: December 1, 2012