ELLIPTIC GALAXIES AT LOW SURFACE BRIGHTNESS

We present BVI CCD photometry of a sample of 11 elliptical galaxies ch osen to cover a significant range in absolute luminosity. Our observat ions of the larger systems include exposures taken with the galaxy off -centre, allowing a better estimate of the true sky-background. We hav e used model-fitting to measure the structural parameters (ellipticity , position angle of the major axis, and the Fourier 4theta terms) of t hese systems, as well as determining the (B - V) and (V - I) colours a s a function of radius. In contradiction to some previous observations , we find that none of the galaxies has significant, large-scale radia l colour gradients. Three galaxies have shells or arcs - structure not previously detected in either NGC 3091 or NGC 4936.