Brief introduction of Phyllis Bito.

Bito lived in China for only one year, but he took many photos of historical value. From the photos he took in those years, we can see that on the captured Dagukou Fort, "China soldiers who died in a defensive mission were lying on a fortress castle, with their original soil cannons and crossbows next to them". There are scenes of the bodies of Qing soldiers everywhere, recording the results of the cruel slaughter of the city by the allied forces. 1Beitang fortress captured by British troops from Chinese on August 2, 860. At this time, the British army built Beitang fortress into their headquarters. On the ruins of the fortress, a destroyed cannon seems to be telling the fierce battle that happened here not long ago. The cannon was originally placed on a wooden gun rack, and the British soldiers in the photo are resting in this newly occupied position. At that time, most of the ancient city walls and Gu Men in Beijing, which suffered from the war, no longer existed, but from Bito, we saw some photographs recording the old city walls and Gu Men in Beijing. For example, "Beijing Inner City Gate and Wall", this photo has exquisite composition and smooth lines. Chaoyangmen is connected with the distant city wall, which shows the grandeur and magnificence of Beijing to the fullest.

Among the photos taken by felice beato that year, the most interesting one is the portrait of Prince Gong he took on10.2, 1860+ 165438. Is this Prince Gong's game? 10 years1images left for us after signing the Beijing Treaty between China and Britain and the Beijing Treaty between China and France on October 24th and 25th. 1860, 10 year124 October, after a series of major events, such as the occupation of Andingmen by the British and French allied forces and the burning of Yuanmingyuan, the infamous signing ceremony of the Beijing Treaty between China and Britain was held in the lobby of the Ritual Department of Beijing Imperial City. At that time, the British representative was Lord Erkin, the British special envoy, and the Chinese representative was Prince Gong, the younger brother of Emperor Xianfeng. . As one of the few military photographers, Bito came to the hall of the signing ceremony and prepared to record this historical moment with images. Regarding the specific process of taking photos of Prince Gong by Bito in the lobby of the Ministry of Rites, General Clifton, commander of the British forces of Britain and France, described in his diary: "At the treaty signing ceremony, Mr. Bito, who was tireless, wanted to take good photos of the signing of the Beijing Treaty, so he moved his camera equipment in and put it in the middle of the gate, aiming a huge lens at the gloomy Prince Gong's chest. The emperor's brother raised his head in horror and turned pale when he brushed it ... He thought that the strange gun on the other side would blow his head off at any time-the camera really looked a bit like a loaded mortar, ready to shoot its shells into his poor body at any time. People hurriedly explained to him that there was no malice. When he realized that he was taking his portrait, the frightened expression on his face suddenly turned from cloudy to sunny. " However, due to the poor indoor lighting at that time, Bito's filming of Prince Gong was not successful.

Prince Gong paid a return visit to Elgin, and Phyllis Bito once again seized the opportunity to give Prince Gong a game at Lord Elgin's residence. Fill in a portrait photo. According to Rainey, a British military doctor, Prince Gong was "wearing a purple robe embroidered with Huanglong" ... He wore an official hat with an upturned edge, and there was no other decoration except a knob made of red silk on the top. "This photo was very successful, and has been used many times since then, becoming the standard image of Prince Gong. From the image left by Bito, we can see Prince Gong's thin face, solemn expression, frown and melancholy. This is the earliest royal photo we know at present, which provides reliable image data for studying political history and photography history. Felice beato, as an embedded photographer of the British-French allied forces, came to China during the Second Opium War in 1860, and for the first time aimed his camera at Beijing, the imperial city of the Qing Empire. More precious, Bito also photographed the Imperial Garden Yuanmingyuan, which was not burned at that time.

1860 65438+ 10 18 to 20, the British and French allied forces launched 4000 soldiers to burn Yuanmingyuan separately. The fire burned for three days, and the Yuanmingyuan, which was full of colorful precious treasures, was set on fire. Before 10 and 18, Bito had taken a certain number of photos of Yuanmingyuan. Today, Qingyi Garden, as one of the five major gardens at that time, is widely circulated.

Bito left two lines of records on the back of a photo. Although it is vague, the handwriting can still be seen. English is: "The Great Palace Museum, Yuanmingyuan, before burning, Beiping 10/8 1860. Beijing 18601kloc-0/0/October18 before the Great Palace Museum and Yuanmingyuan burned down. In the photo, we can see that this building is the Epiphyllum Pavilion in Qingyi Garden. When the Summer Palace was rebuilt, it was converted into Jingfu Pavilion. This photo is now in the Peabody Essex Museum.

Around 1860, Bito photographed Hongkong, Guangzhou, Tianjin, Beijing and other places with the army, and was one of the earliest photographers who photographed China area so far. Especially the imperial city of Beijing, which restricted foreigners from entering at that time. It photographed burning lighthouses in Tongzhou, Andingmen, Qingyi Garden, Tiananmen Square and Lama Temple. This is the earliest photo of old Beijing now. Most of the ancient city walls and gates that were in full swing in those days have now disappeared. Only from the photos taken by Bito in those years can we see those original old Beijing customs.