Photographs made by Eduardo Masfere documenting the lives and culture of the Igorot (mountain) people, mainly Bontok and Kalinga. There are also a few photographs that relate to the Gaddang, Ifugao, and Kankanai peoples. Many of the photographs are portraits, though others show pipes and tobacco use, basketry and weaving, ceremonies, and agriculture.
Biographical/Historical note:
Eduardo Masferre (1909-1995) was born in the Gran Cordillera Central region of Luzon to a Spanish father and native Filipino mother from the Kankanai tribe. Between 1914 and 1921, the Masferre family lived in Spain, where Eduardo began his education. After completing his schooling in the Philippines, Masferre followed in his father's footsteps and became a missionary teacher and then a missionary administrator in Sagada. He began photographing the mountain tribes in 1934, documenting traditions that he feared would be lost. After World War II, he opened a photographic studio in Bontok, selling studio portraits as well as photographs of nearby villages. In 1988, a book of his photographs, E. Masferre: People of the Philippine Cordillera, was produced.
Local Call Number(s):
NAA Photo Lot 91-30
Location of Other Archival Materials:
A photograph of Masferre held in the National Anthropological Archives in Photo Lot R92-43.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Rights:
These photographs cannot be published without permission from Eduardo Masferre's heirs. Contact the repository for terms of use.
