Page 11 - Bulletin 7 2003

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and at the exhibitions. It is probable that the early study of Africana benefited greatly
by his work, and his collection still serves as a useful introduction to prospective

students of this field. With its numerous reproductions of pictures by Angas, De
Meillon, Poortermans, Gordon, Burchell, Daniell, Baines or Bowler haphazardly

scattered throughout his collection, going through the boxes of Elliott prints at the

Cape Archives always yields its small surprises. But their value in this field is
diminishing. So much material been discovered since Elliott’s time and so much

published in handsome publications, that his reproductions can only be regarded as a
useful – though poorly documented – anthology. Nevertheless it took three decades

after his death before a catalogue of pictorial Africana was published that contained
more material: that of the Africana Museum’s holdings, compiled by R F Kennedy.

To serve as a historical thread to his exhibitions, Elliott also photographed archival
material such as early grants and other documents. These now have little value, as

any student of history will surely want to go to the originals, which in any case can

easily be reproduced when required. The numerous portraits included in the Elliott
Collection, whether reproductions of engravings or of earlier portraits or original

studies by Elliott himself, are of more value, if only as a handy source of book
illustration (I do not refer to the dozens of Malay wedding photographs, less still to

the numerous ‘figure studies’ of young children, which hardly deserve a place on the
crowded shelves of Government Archives.) His studies of Bantu or Malay heads

were popular at the time, but these have little value today. There are countless

photographs dealing with the South African War: of prisoners and of departing
troops, and also of military equipment. Much of this is rather boring material, most

of it lacking references, but some of it may one day prove to be of some slight
documentary value to researchers. The same applies to the many negatives devoted

to shipping.

We now come to what in the context of this book concerns us most: Elliott as a

recorder of the old material culture of the Cape, of its old houses and their setting and
furnishings. The photographs of furniture, silver, etc., to start with, are easier to find

than most other subjects, as they occur in groups: Cape silver, Nos 3577 – 3653,