Looking through my grandfather's old photo albums last night and this post card fell out.....
Well, to be precise, it slithered out like a very large silverfish, hit me on the leg, then slid across the floor. When I finally managed to retreive it from the dust and mice poo under the fridge I discovered that it was an old photograph of a dirigable.
It took me only a moment to realise that the dirigable on the card is almost exactly the same as the one in the image which starts this post.
I felt a bit odd when I saw it - it's too much of a coincidence to be a coincidence, if you know what I mean. I heard that music they play in scary movies - you know, it sounds like : "ooooheeeeeeeheeeeeeeeehhhhhhhooooooaaahhhh ---- errre" (you have to say that out loud).
There's not much on the back of the card - just that the photograph was taken by Lala Deen Dayal.
Lala Deen Dayal it turns out, was a famous Indian photographer of the time. He was well known for photographs of camels, of the Viceroy of India in unusual yoga poses and sumptuous interiors of the Bashir-bagh Palace.
It was less well known that he had a fetish for dirigables. The correct name I believe is "amoria dirgibalitanes".
Interestingly : "the word fetish is derived through the Portuguese feitiço from the Latin factitius (facere, to do, or to make), signifying made by art, artificial (cf. Old English fetys in Chaucer). From facio are derived many words signifying idol, idolatry, or witchcraft. Later Latin has facturari, to bewitch, and factura, witchcraft. Hence Portuguese feitiço, Italian fatatura, O. Fr. faiture, meaning witchcraft, magic. (from Catholic Encyclopeadia)"
Hmmm... meanwhile back on subject:
I don't know what Lala Deen Dayal was doing in Lighfoot Sound though, as it's about two thousand miles from India. The stamp is Canadian; and the post card was sent by a General A.W. Cutler.
I'll have to look more into this one. I couldn't find out much about Captain Robinson either - but it's early days.
All in all? At the moment? A complete mystery. But tomorrow? Tomorrow is another day.
Thank you for looking. I hope you enjoyed your stay :)
PS thats 21 posts in 20 days. I have one to catch up......
