Indian Company School Album of Mica Paintings, South India, Trichinopoly or Tanjore, c.1850

A beautiful set of 22 Indian Company School Mica Paintings contained within their original paper album.

Album sheet size: 14.5 x 19.5cm.

Mica size (each): 11.5 x 16.5cm.

The collection comprises 22 particularly fine, detailed and varied scenes, including ceremonies and festivities, travel by carriage and palanquin, trades and occupations.

The majority (19) of the paintings are inscribed below on the album page in ink, giving the painting's subject in English. There are two album pages with an inscription but no accompanying painting. The first two spreads are disbound from the inner pages and the album covers are no longer extant.

In South India mica was mined at Cuddapah and brought to Trichinopoly. Artists from the nearby city of Tanjore migrated to Trichinopoly and began producing reverse paintings on glass, before working with mica. The predominant colours in South Indian mica paintings are arsenic green, lemon yellow and orangish-brown.

View details of the 22 individual paintings below.