King's African Rifles Band with European Officer, Malawi, ca. 1914-1918

Black and white lantern slide featuring a military band of the King's African Rifles posing in a group with a European officer in the centre. Drums are arranged on the ground in the foreground of the image. The band members hold bugles, and wear fezzes (which would be black for Nyasaland units) and wear dark jerseys, in contrast to the usual khaki worn by troops from the King's African Rifles during the First World War. The uniform may be that worn before the First World War, when dark blue jerseys and puttees (cloths wound around the lower leg) were worn by the King's African Rifles. The European officer wears a khaki uniform with long shorts and a pith helmet, and looks noticeably more relaxed in posture than the African members of the band. By the side of the European sits an African man in a khaki trouser suit and black fez, who may be a more senior officer or band leader. This slide comes from a set on the activities of the King’s African Rifles battalions in Nyasaland. It was originally held by the Church of Scotland, and generated by J.W MacKay.

本藏品为一张黑白玻璃幻灯照片，画面主体为国王非洲步枪团（King's African Rifles）的军乐队集体合影，画面中央为一名欧洲军官。画面前景的地面上摆放着若干军鼓。乐队成员手持军号，头戴费兹帽（尼亚萨兰部队的费兹帽为黑色），身着深色运动衫；这与第一次世界大战期间国王非洲步枪团官兵常规穿着的卡其色军装形成鲜明对比。该套军装大概率为第一次世界大战前的制式着装——彼时国王非洲步枪团官兵身着深蓝色运动衫并佩戴绑腿（puttee，缠绕于小腿的布带）。这名欧洲军官身着卡其色军装，搭配长及膝盖的短裤与遮阳盔（pith helmet），其姿态明显比合影中的非洲乐队成员更为放松。欧洲军官身旁坐着一名身着卡其色长裤套装、头戴黑色费兹帽的非洲男子，其身份大概率为高级军官或乐队领队。该幻灯照片出自一套记录国王非洲步枪团尼亚萨兰营活动的藏品集，最初由苏格兰长老会（Church of Scotland）收藏，由J·W·麦凯（J.W MacKay）制作。