During the last decades of the 19th century, travel to the Far East from Europe was shortened by the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Travellers, adventurers,scientists, writers, illustrators, could now venture into lands that seemed distant and mysterious. They came and documented everything they saw from people, to places, natural and material history. Written first hand accounts, journals, books, horticultural manuals, flora, fauna, birds, illustrations of people and scenes were drawn, illustrated, and sketched for lithographs. It was also the age of illustrated magazines and publishers sent correspondents and artists on these voyages to bring back drawings they would print. These Illustrated publications were the forerunners of international weeklies.
During the last decades of the 19th century, travel to the Far East from Europe was shortened by the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Travellers, adventurers,scientists, writers, illustrators, could now venture into lands that seemed distant and mysterious. They came and documented everything they saw from people, to places, natural and material history. Written first hand accounts, journals, books, horticultural manuals, flora, fauna, birds, illustrations of people and scenes were drawn, illustrated, and sketched for lithographs. It was also the age of illustrated magazines and publishers sent correspondents and artists on these voyages to bring back drawings they would print. These Illustrated publications were the forerunners of international weeklies.
These pages from the Illustrated London News ( ILN ) to name a most popular publication for its time, have now become valuable, visible records of the Philippines in the 19th century.
