“民国六年十二月泗水中华学校国民小学毕业女生及幼稚生合影” – A group photograph ofgirls from the Surabaya Chinese School who have passed primary school and kindergarten, on the 12th month of the 6th year of the Republic [1917]

This photograph shows a group of young female students with teachers on the sides. It was taken during a primary school graduation ceremony.This large group of photographs provides important visual documentation of the fashion, studio photography and lifestyle of Peranakans of the Straits Settlements and Indonesia in the late 19th to mid-20th centuries. The collection also allows study of different photographic techniques and covers a wide range of themes, including changing fashions (from baju panjang and baju kurong to kebaya and cheongsam), festive celebrations (weddings, funerals, ancestral rites, Chinese New Year), interiors, transportation and children.

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