Fotoreproductie van een tekening van de jacht op beren before 1880

This photograph, taken by Nicholas & Co., is of an illustration entitled, ‘Bear Shooting’. It comes from an era in which the thrill of the hunt was translated into carefully curated images for a reading public. Here, we see bears tumbling down what looks like a steep ravine. The image romanticizes nature, but also subtly asserts human dominance over it, as if hunting were not a brutal act but a dance of life. Made at a time when natural history was a popular pursuit, this image caters to the Victorian fascination with the wild, untamed corners of the world and the imperialistic desire to conquer them. Consider this image alongside texts of the period, such as travelogues, adventure novels, and scientific reports, to understand its place in the broader cultural landscape of the British Empire.