Batavia - Gang Scott 1863 - 1866

Woodbury & Page made this photograph, "Batavia - Gang Scott," to capture a street scene in what is now Jakarta, Indonesia, during the colonial era. The image presents a tree-lined road, illustrating the imposition of European order on a tropical landscape. The neat fences and carefully planted trees speak to the Dutch colonial project of transforming the East Indies into a profitable and governable territory. These visual elements subtly assert colonial power, demonstrating control over the environment. The photograph was likely commissioned or sold to Europeans eager to document and consume images of their colonial possessions. To fully understand this image, one needs to research the history of Dutch colonialism, the role of photography in shaping perceptions of the East Indies, and the social hierarchies that defined life in Batavia.