The Italian-British Felice Beato (1832-1909) was amongst the earliest photographers to dedicate his career to photographing Asia and the Near East. His travels led him to numerous countries around the world, for instance India, Greece, Palestine, Korea, Japan, and China. If Chinese exotic sceneries and portraits were popular subject matter, the chronicling of the successive wars that occurred during the second half of the nineteenth century became also important topic in the medium of photography. Beato sailed to China on February 1860 with Hope Grant, the British commander in the Second Opium War (1856-1860). A pioneer war photographer, Beato recorded the aftermaths of the battles, often with dead still in place. Nevertheless his oeuvre remained diverse, encompassing various genres such as topographical and architectural views, panoramas, portraits, and costume studies.

More information:
• Conner, Lois. “Felice Beato – A photographer on the Eastern Road.” China Heritage Quarterly No. 26 June (2011)
• Images: J. Paul Getty Museum, National Gallery of Australia, Arago