Among Unknown Tribes: Rediscovering the Photographs of Explorer Carl Lumholtz

by Bill Broyles, Ann Christine Eek, Phyllis La Farge

Internationally renowned as an exciting guide to unknown peoples and places, Norwegian Carl Lumholtz was a Victorian-era explorer, anthropologist, natural scientist, writer, and photographer who worked in Australia, Mexico, and Borneo. His photographs of the Tarahumara, Huichol, Cora, Tepehuan, Southern Pima, and Tohono O’odham tribes of Mexico and southwest Arizona were among the very first taken of these cultures and still provide the best photographic record of them at the turn of the twentieth century. Lumholtz published his photographs in several books, including Unknown Mexico and New Trails in Mexico, but, because photographic publishing was then in its infancy, most of the images were poorly printed, badly cropped, or reworked by “illustrators” using crude techniques. Among Unknown Tribes presents more than two hundred of Lumholtz’s best photographs―many never before published―from the archives of the American Museum of Natural History in New York and the Museum of Cultural History in Oslo, Norway. The images are newly scanned, most from the original negatives, and printed uncropped, disclosing a wealth of previously hidden detail. Each photograph is fully identified and often amplified by Lumholtz’s own notes and captions. Accompanying the images are essays and photo notes that survey Lumholtz’s career and legacy, as well as what his photographs reveal about the “unknown tribes.” By giving Lumholtz’s photographs the high-quality reproduction they deserve, Among Unknown Tribes honors not only the Norwegian explorer but also the native peoples who continue to struggle for recognition and justice as they actively engage in the traditional customs that Lumholtz recorded.

327 pages, Hardcover

First published May 14, 2014

Reviews

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful coffee table book, but more importantly, it is the photographic record of an incredible adventurer. In the Victorian era, Carl Lumholtz was an anthropologist, explorer, scientist, and photographer whose photos of the Tarahumara, Huichol, Cora, Tepehuan, Southern Pima, and Tohono O'odham tribes give a glimpse into sometimes remote cultures, some of which have changed greatly over time.

The writing team gives a variety of perspectives on the Norwegian, Lumholz' work, and the quality photographs open up a fascinating world long gone.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't read this, just looked at the pictures, and they were beautiful.