Scene in Bombay

1826

Colour aquatint on paper

Print size: 10 x 10.75 in (25.5 x 27.5 cm)
Sheet size: 10.75 x 12.25 in (27.2 x 31 cm)
Sheet size with mount: 17.5 x 18.75 in (43.5 x 47.5 cm)

Engraved by R G Reeve and coloured by J B Hogarth after Robert Melville Grindlay. Published by Ackermann in 1826.

"This is plate 10 from Robert Melville Grindlay's Scenery, Costumes and Architecture chiefly on the Western Side of India. Captain Robert Melville Grindlay (1786-1877), founder of the Grindlays Bank and a self-taught artist, arrived in India in 1803. Only 17 years old at the time, he worked with the East India Company's military service and served with the 7th Bombay Native Infantry from 1804 to 1820. During these years, he travelled widely across the country, and made numerous drawings and sketches on the landscapes and life around him, including views of Bombay, Gujarat and Ellora.

Grindlay explains that the Bombay 'Green' in 1811 was "an irregular area, surrounded by various public buildings and originally intended for the Garrison-Parade; but occupied during the dry season by vast piles of cotton bales, marine stores, and various bulky articles of merchandise." The main buildings in this image of the Green are the offices of the Governor's Secretary and the Sudder Adalat, or Court of Appeal. On the right is the theatre. The figure in the centre is a Parsi merchant." (Source: British Library Board)

The building depicted in the background is the Mumbai Samachar Building, informally known as the Red House and is still standing thanks to a remarkable chain of coincidences, albeit in a modified form. It was formerly known as the Old Secretariat and was constructed around 1750 on the location of a freshwater tank. Fardunjee Marzban, a Parsi businessman, launched the Bombay Samachar, Asia's oldest continuously-running newspaper, in this structure more than 200 years ago after establishing a nascent printing machine in the space.

This work will be shipped mounted

NON-EXPORTABLE

This lot will be shipped in "as is" condition. For further details, please refer to the images of individual lots as reference for the condition of each book.