FDA-D.161-2010
Parts
Object number
FDA-D.161-2010
Object type
Identification
Title
The Cossea Begum's Palace, Delhi
Pilkington
Pilkington
Title Type
assigned by cataloguer
collection
collection
Comments
‘William Daniell was only fifteen years old when he embarked for India with his uncle, Thomas, who was already established as a landscape painter, largely of country house views.
The example of William Hodges, who had returned from India in 1784, showed the potential for views of buildings and landscapes of India, both for the home market, and for the increasingly affluent trading and military community in the subcontinent. The Daniells arrived in India in 1786 and worked for two years in Calcutta, where they published their first prints of the city, before setting out to explore inland. Since the collapse of the Mughal Empire, Delhi had been under the control of the Marathus, and Hodges had been unable to reach it; there would be obvious interest in any accurate representations of the capital of this once famed seat of power.
At this stage in their travels, uncle and nephew mainly worked collaboratively. The initial drawings were usually made using a 'camera obscura', with the outline (often, but not necessarily made by Thomas) being later strengthened in ink and perhaps coloured by William. Later in their tour - the Daniells remained in India until 1793 - William worked more independently, but at this stage, it was more normal for both to be involved in the creation of each work. William's diary records that the drawing of the Cossea Begum's Palace was made on 22 February 1789, mid-way through their stay in Delhi, which lasted from 16 February until 6 March. The building formed part of the Red Fort, whose gateway can be seen in the distance, but was taken down during the nineteenth century. The watercolour was published in May 1795 in the first issue of the Daniell's 'Oriental Scenery', where it was captioned, like most of the early prints, as 'Drawn and engraved by Thomas Daniell'.’
[Source: Louisa Connor Bulman and Timothy Wilcox, ‘A Genius for Watercolour: An Exhibition of British Drawings and Watercolours from the Eton College Collections’, Christie’s 2003, p.61, catalogue no. 52]
The example of William Hodges, who had returned from India in 1784, showed the potential for views of buildings and landscapes of India, both for the home market, and for the increasingly affluent trading and military community in the subcontinent. The Daniells arrived in India in 1786 and worked for two years in Calcutta, where they published their first prints of the city, before setting out to explore inland. Since the collapse of the Mughal Empire, Delhi had been under the control of the Marathus, and Hodges had been unable to reach it; there would be obvious interest in any accurate representations of the capital of this once famed seat of power.
At this stage in their travels, uncle and nephew mainly worked collaboratively. The initial drawings were usually made using a 'camera obscura', with the outline (often, but not necessarily made by Thomas) being later strengthened in ink and perhaps coloured by William. Later in their tour - the Daniells remained in India until 1793 - William worked more independently, but at this stage, it was more normal for both to be involved in the creation of each work. William's diary records that the drawing of the Cossea Begum's Palace was made on 22 February 1789, mid-way through their stay in Delhi, which lasted from 16 February until 6 March. The building formed part of the Red Fort, whose gateway can be seen in the distance, but was taken down during the nineteenth century. The watercolour was published in May 1795 in the first issue of the Daniell's 'Oriental Scenery', where it was captioned, like most of the early prints, as 'Drawn and engraved by Thomas Daniell'.’
[Source: Louisa Connor Bulman and Timothy Wilcox, ‘A Genius for Watercolour: An Exhibition of British Drawings and Watercolours from the Eton College Collections’, Christie’s 2003, p.61, catalogue no. 52]
Other number
Pi 60
Description
Dimensions
height (actual size): 365mm
width (actual size): 533mm
width (actual size): 533mm
Inscription
Inscribed, on original mount: `The Cossea Begum's Palace - Delhi'
Materials & techniques note
Pencil and watercolour, within the artist's black line border
Production
Person
History and association
Object history note
Exhibited: possibly Royal Academy, London, 1816, catalogue number 200, as 'The entrance to the palace of the Cotsea Begum, at Delhi, East Indies' T. Daniell, R.A.'; 'A Genius for Watercolour', Christie’s, London, 2003, catalogue number 52
Previous ownership
Pilkington, Alan, 1879 - 1973: Bequeathed to Eton by Alan Pilkington, 1973
