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Camp at 20,000 feet – The last day. Photographer: George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924) by kind permission of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG)
Exhibition

Everest 1921 - A Reconnaissance

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Pioneering works in the history of photography! Exhibition of prints from the newly digitised negatives of the 1921 British Mount Everest Reconnaissance Expedition.

With the kind permission of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), this exhibition showcases a selection of platinum prints of the approaches to Mount Everest, and the mountain itself, taken in 1921 and reconstructed from newly digitised fragile silver nitrate negatives, preserved for the Society by the British Film Institute, and celluloid and glass plate negatives held at the Society.

The photographs were originally intended to complement the purpose of the Expedition – to carry out new and more detailed survey work in the region. The Expedition was the first to set foot on the mountain, climbing to over 23,000 feet and laying plans for the subsequent attempts on the summit in 1922 and 1924. However, notwithstanding these imperatives, the aesthetic quality of these images – among the first to document Everest – is remarkable.

The selection on display includes some of the finest panoramic photographs of any high mountain region ever taken. And as well as capturing the sublime beauty of the high Himalayas, the images are pioneering works in the history of photography: the 1921 Expedition supplied the very first recorded images of the Tibetan people.

Many of the images in this exhibition were taken by one of the most famous alumni of Magdalene College, George Leigh Mallory (1905-1909). Mallory was a member of the 1921, 1922 and 1924 Expeditions to Everest, falling to his death while descending the mountain in June 1924; whether or not he and his climbing partner, Andrew ‘Sandy’ Irvine, reached the summit remains a matter of speculation to this day. We include display materials from the College archives on his time as a student at Magdalene, letters home from Tibet in 1921 and a collection of climbing equipment typical of that used in the 1920s.

List of Prints

List of Prints

Print 1

Second Advanced Camp, West Rongbuk Glacier, 18,500 feet
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Print 2

Camp at 20,000 feet, in cloudy weather after snowfall
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Print 3

Above: Team member in foreground with Mount Everest, Kangshung Face and Lhotse from the Karta Glacier
Edward Oliver Wheeler (1890-1962)

Below: Cho Uyo from Dirty Glacier Summit on east slope Kyetrak Glacier opposite Cho Rabsang
Edward Oliver Wheeler (1890-1962)

Print 4

Mount Everest from head of Kama chu
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Print 5

Mount Everest in cloud from summit north of Advanced Base
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Print 6

View along ridge to 21,300 ft. snow peak. Summits of Chomo Lünzo and Makalu in centre
Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury (1881-1963)

Print 7

Cairns at a rest stop on the way up to the Kharta Glacier
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Print 8

View from 17,000 ft. looking across Kama Valley to 21,000 ft. peak on Nepal frontier
Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury (1881-1963)

Print 9

Chomolönzo and Makalu from summit 21,200 ft. south-west of Advanced Base
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Print 10

Above: Temple at Lapchi Kang
Alexander Frederick Richmond Wollaston (1875-1930)

Below: Kampa Dzong
Photographer: George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Print 11

Left to right:

The Dzongpen of Kharta and his wife
Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury (1881-1963)

Tibetan woman
Alexander Frederick Richmond Wollaston (1875-1930)

Three nuns at Nunnery at Tatsang
Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury (1881-1963)

Print 12

Left to right:

Looking up Kama Valley from 10,000 feet
Alexander Frederick Richmond Wollaston (1875-1930)

Valley of Lakes. Sanyun La in distance
Alexander Frederick Richmond Wollaston (1875-1930)

Kharta Valley looking West
Alexander Frederick Richmond Wollaston (1875-1930)

Looking down Kama Valley to junction of E. Makalu Glacier
Alexander Frederick Richmond Wollaston (1875-1930)

North peaks of Makalu from Kama Valley (looking S.W.)
Alexander Frederick Richmond Wollaston (1875-1930)

Print 13

View of Everest summit (top) and Great Couloir in centre of North Face
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Print 14

Left to right:

The Kama chu
Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury (1881-1963)

Headman and Ang-Jenge in forest of Kama chu
Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury (1881-1963)

Juniper trunks in forest of the Kama chu
Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury (1881-1963)

Rapids of the Kama chu: here it descends 800 feet in one mile
Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury (1881-1963)

Print 15

Above: Untitled
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Below: Looking down Arun Valley from slopes south of Shiling
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Print 16

Left to right:

Everest and South Peak, in cloud, from Island, West Rongbuk Glacier
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Untitled
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Looking east from summit south-west of Advanced Base
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Print 17

Above: Makalu
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Below: Makalu
George Leigh Mallory (1886-1924)

Print 18

View from Windy Col Camp, 22,500 ft., showing Everest, North Col and North Peak looking W.

Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury (1881-1963)

Print 19

The Abbot of Shekar Chote
Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury (1881-1963)

Exhibition Location

The Robert Cripps Gallery, Magdalene College New Library.

Ticket holders are kindly asked to arrive at the main Magdalene entrance and wait in First Court at their reserved time to be escorted to the gallery. 

How to find us > 
College Map >

As the College grounds are currently closed to visitors you will be asked to wear a face-covering during your visit.

Exhibition Times

The exhibition will be running from Tuesday 23 November to Thursday 9 December.

Public Access

Bookable public viewing slots at 10:00, 12:00, 14:00 and 16:00 will be available on:

  • Tuesday 23 November
  • Thursday 25 November
  • Tuesday 30 November
  • Thursday 2 December
  • Tuesday 7 December
  • Thursday 9 December

Booking your place

The exhibition is free to attend but booking is required.

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