Empire: World History 321. Exploding Rum-filled Coffins, Anglo-Indian Sisterhood, & Julia Margaret Cameron
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Jan 1, 2026 
Art historian Emily Burns joins to delve into the life of Julia Margaret Cameron, the pioneering photographer and great aunt of Virginia Woolf. Sparks fly as they discuss the captivating Anglo-Indian Pattle Sisters, who dazzled Victorian society and hosted many illustrious figures. Discover how Cameron’s self-taught innovation and distinctive pictorialist style redefined photography. Emily also explores the vibrant artistic community fostered at Little Holland House, a hub for creativity and intellect that echoed through time.
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Late Start, Lasting Influence
- Julia Margaret Cameron began photography at 48 and quickly became a pioneering artist in the medium.
- Her late start and self-taught methods produced influential, painterly portraits that reshaped Victorian photography.
Rum Barrel Return That Might Be Fiction
- Virginia Woolf relayed a colorful but partly apocryphal tale about James Pattle being shipped back to England in a rum barrel that exploded in the Hooghly.
- The story dramatizes the family's Indian past but conflicts with the existence of a South London grave for him.
Anglo-Indian Style As Cultural Confidence
- The Pattle sisters openly celebrated their Anglo-Indian identity with Indian dress, food, and language in Victorian London.
- Their style and cultural confidence influenced bohemian fashion and Pre-Raphaelite aesthetics.
