3 OF 5 
Sir James Dewar
3 of 5 portraits of Sir James Dewar
© reserved; collection National Portrait Gallery, London
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Sir James Dewar
by Alexander Scott, or Ethel Glazebrook
platinum print, 1902
7 7/8 in. x 6 in. (201 mm x 153 mm)
Given by Lady Dewar, 1926
Photographs Collection
NPG x5197
Artistsback to top
- Ethel Glazebrook, Photographer. Artist or producer associated with 5 portraits.
- Alexander Scott (active circa 1900), Photographer. Artist or producer associated with 1 portrait.
Linked publicationsback to top
- Rogers, Malcolm, Camera Portraits, 1989 (accompanying the exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery from 20 October 1989 - 21 January 1990), p. 149 Read entry
Dewar was a dominant figure in experimental science in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. At Cambridge and at the Royal Institution he carried out important work on the liquefaction of gases, and laid the foundations of subsequent advances in atomic physics. He invented a precursor of the 'Thermos' flask, and was, with Sir Frederick Abel, the inventor of cordite (1889). An impatient, indeed choleric man, he is shown here at work in his laboratory in an attitude of intense concentration.
This photograph was given to the Gallery in 1926 by his widow Lady Dewar. It is inscribed in an unknown hand on the back of the mount: 'Prof. Sir James Dewar./ Taken by Dr. Alexander Scott/ in 1902/ In the Laboratory of/ The Royal Institution', but the photographer Olive Edis, in whose studio this print was possibly made, believed that it was taken by an associate of hers, Ethel Glazebrooke.
Events of 1902back to top
Current affairs
Prime Minister Lord Salisbury resigns and is replaced by his nephew, Balfour, who this year introduces the Education Act, which controversially hands control of secondary education from school boards to Local Education Authorities.Arthur Griffith, leader of the Society of Gaels, introduces a policy of 'Sinn Fein' at a Society meeting in Dublin, which includes passive resistance to the British and the establishment of an Irish ruling council.
Art and science
Joseph Conrad publishes his short story The Heart of Darkness, a powerful critique of European imperialism. Based on his experiences in Africa, the narrative follows Charles Marlow's journey into the Belgian Congo in search of the mysterious trader Kurtz.In New York, Alfred Stieglitz founds the Photo-Secession movement, a group of US photographers influenced by the Pictoralist movement, seeking recognition of photography as art in its own terms.
International
The first Aswan Dam is opened on the Nile, at the time the world's largest dam. The gravity dam, 1900m long and 54m high, was designed by Sir William Willcocks and built by engineers including Sir John Aird, whose firm John Aird & Company was the main contractor.The Boer War ends after the Boers accept their loss of independence under the Treaty of Vereeniging, bringing the Boer republics under British control.
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