{"product_id":"indian-company-school-set-of-8-indian-bird-paintings-on-mica-original-mid-19th-century-gouache-painting-ke-062","title":"Indian Company School, Set of 8 Indian Bird Paintings on Mica – Mid-19th-century gouache painting","description":"\u003cp\u003eA Set of 8 original mid-19th-century gouache paintings on mica – Indian Company School, Indian Birds.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA superb set of finely painted bird subjects in gouache on mica.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSubjects comprise:\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSharpes Starling;\u003cbr\u003eSlender-billed scimitar-babbler;\u003cbr\u003eLong-tailed Shrike;\u003cbr\u003eHeart-spotted Woodpecker;\u003cbr\u003eBrahminy Kite;\u003cbr\u003eTreecreeper;\u003cbr\u003eSlender-billed Oriole Bird;\u003cbr\u003eIndian Paradise Flycatcher.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEach mica: 14.5 x 10cm. Each sheet is loose with no mount or backing.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNatural history subjects and India's native flora and fauna became popular amongst Western patrons and collectors in the late 18th and early 19th century. In Lucknow, General Claude Martin provided imported European paper to artists to prepare botanical studies and other natural history works, whilst in Calcutta, Mary, Lady Impey (wife of Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in Bengal, Elijah Impey) had a menagerie where she employed artists to paint a variety of animals and birds. Also in Calcutta, Dr William Roxburgh, superintendent of Calcutta Botanical Garden from 1793, appointed local artists to make botanical studies of the specimens in his charge. The efforts of Martin, Impey, Roxburgh and their artists gave rise to a large body of Company Paintings dedicated to natural history.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCompany School paintings of birds not only make for a valuable ornithological record, but also allow for beautiful decorative compositions, with jewel-like colours and fine feather detail. Indian Company paintings on mica are rare; it is estimated that as of now, there are only around 7,000 mica paintings available in the world.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Somerset \u0026 Wood","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55549122314569,"sku":"KE-062","price":1926.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0930\/4306\/5161\/files\/KE-062.jpg?v=1791459896","url":"https:\/\/somersetandwood.com\/it-eu\/products\/indian-company-school-set-of-8-indian-bird-paintings-on-mica-original-mid-19th-century-gouache-painting-ke-062","provider":"Somerset \u0026 Wood Fine Art","version":"1.0","type":"link"}