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Group Portrait from Royal Niger Company

Image Portraits
Group portrait of individuals in front of a thatched building.
A group portrait of individuals associated with the Royal Niger Company, photographed by William Henry Crosse between 1886 and 1895.

A photograph depicting approximately 13 individuals standing in a horizontal line before a long, low-profile building. The structure features a steeply pitched gabled roof made of thatch or plant fibers and walls constructed from vertical organic elements such as reeds or wooden poles. The subjects exhibit a variety of clothing, including traditional wrapped textiles with geometric or organic motifs, and Western-influenced attire such as button-down shirts, shorts, and trousers. The setting is characterized by a flat, unpaved earth surface and dense vegetation, including large canopy trees and palm-like trees in the background.

Community Notes

Onyeka Nwokike

Aug 29, 2026

The photograph is associated with the publication Nigeria: Our Latest Protectorate (1900) by Rev. Charles Henry Robinson. Robinson, who likely donated the collection to the MAA, credited Dr. W. H. Crosse for the loan of photographs and acknowledged the permission of Sir George Goldie, the founder of the Royal Niger Company, to use images connected to the company's work.

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