Asia as a Whole · 20th century
€ 270
One of a kind: this is the sheet in the photographs. Ships from Langweer, the Netherlands.
Condition report: Very good. Light foxing and minor age toning confined mainly to the card mount. Photogravure impression clean and well preserved with no tears or creases. Verso clean.
Young Tobacco Under Shade-Plants, Sungei Tatouk — C.J. Kleingrothe, ca. 1910
Photogravure view of a young tobacco plantation at Sungei Tatouk in the Deli region of East Sumatra, captured at the crucial early stage of plant development. Rows of young tobacco plants are individually protected with small shade covers, arranged in precise grid formation across rolling terrain. Plantation workers oversee the field, and processing buildings are visible in the background.
Charles J. Kleingrothe’s Medan studio produced the most comprehensive photographic record of the region during the height of the plantation boom. Tobacco, especially the famous Deli wrapper leaf, was the dominant driver of East Sumatra’s economic expansion in the late 19th and early 20th century. This plate serves as a key historical document of the labor-intensive agricultural system that supplied cigar leaf to European and American markets. Many tobacco plantations of this era later transitioned to rubber and palm oil, making images like this especially valuable as records of a vanished agricultural landscape.
This sheet preserves strong tonal range and fine detail, particularly in the repeating forms of the shade structures and the distant plantation architecture. The original trilingual captions (German, Dutch, English) remain clear beneath the image. Such well-preserved examples of Kleingrothe’s tobacco-related plates are increasingly difficult to obtain.
Condition report: Very good. Light foxing and minor age toning confined mainly to the card mount. Photogravure impression clean and well preserved with no tears or creases. Verso clean.
Framing tips: A warm wood frame such as teak or walnut reinforces the agricultural subject. A soft ivory or light taupe mat provides strong contrast with the darker image. UV-protective glazing recommended.
Technique: Photogravure on original card mount
Maker: C.J. Kleingrothe, Medan, ca. 1910
Printer: J.B. Obernetter, München
Keywords: Deli tobacco, Sungei Tatouk, plantation history, Dutch East Indies, cigar wrapper leaf, colonial agriculture, Sumatra plantation economy, Southeast Asia historical photography
