Portraits include Lord Wolseley and Staff taken on board the S. S. "Queen", groups of 'Friendly Warriors' in the desert at Assouan and at Otao, 'North Camp at Assouan, with 9th Company C.T.C., commanded by Captain Leach, R.E., and Captain Teale, D.A.C.G.', 'Group of Officers of the 9th Bengal Cavalry' and 'The Younger Wife of Sheik Ali, at Suakim'. Other subjects include the fort and town of 'Suakim'; troops and camp life at 'Suakim', 'Assuoan', 'Ambigole Wells', 'Wady Halfa' and 'Tambouk'; the headquartes under Lieut. Col. Wynne at 'Akasheh' and the headquarters at 'Shellal'; the hospital at 'Wady Halfa'.

It seems likely these photographs were taken by members of the 10th Company Royal Engineers who were with the Suakin Field Force in 1884-85. British troops had been sent to Suakin under command of Major-General Sir Gerald Graham in February 1884 at the same time as General Charles Gordon went to Khartoum to supervise the withdrawal of Egyptian forces from the Sudan. Following Gordon's death and the fall of Khartoum in January 1885, Lord Wolseley was ordered to continue fighting the Mahdi, or rebel leader. Graham was again sent to Suakin to defeat the rebel fighters and hold the territory in order to facilitate the construction of a railway which would be used to supply the Nile forces. The large force allocated to Graham included the 9th Bengal Cavalry and the 10th Company Royal Engineers.