Pangwal Hill People, Punjab, India, ca.1900

Group portrait of indigenous people from the Himalayan area of Chamba. There are several rows with the women at the front, they are all wearing traditional dress and the women wear highly decorative jewellery and small caps. They are Pangwals from the Pangi Valley which lies in the north of Himachal Pradesh and is normally isolated for several months over the winter. ❧ The Chamba mission was established, in 1863, by William Ferguson (1821-1904) as an independent venture after the committee of the India Mission turned down his offer of work. When Ferguson retired he handed the mission over to the Church of Scotland. Dr Hutchison took over the running of the Chamba district, in 1873, from William Ferguson and remained there until his death in 1936. Medico-evangelistic work was undertaken amongst the Himalayan slopes and the missionary parties would endure extreme conditions to spread the Christian gospels and provide medical treatments. ❧ Chamba was an independent princely state and came under British influence in 1848. It now forms part of Himachal Pradesh.