Banyan Tree

1848

Original hand-coloured lithograph on paper

Print size: 14.9 x 18.1 in (38 x 46.2 cm)
Sheet size: 16.1 x 20.1 in (41 x 51.2 cm)
With mount: 22.4 x 26.3 in (57 x 67 cm)

Plate no. 7 from the book Views of Calcutta and its Environs, London: Dickinson, 1848

D'Oyly cherished the beautiful vegetation and beauty of India. Because banyan trees are considered sacred by Hindus, it is illegal to chop them down. As a result, the trees grew enormously, sending out aerial roots that eventually sprout new branches when they reach the earth. This picture does a great job of capturing the tree's serpentine growth pattern.

D’Oyly wrote to Warren Hastings (whose wife was his godmother): “To this wonderful work of nature I devoted four days of the last cold weather and while sitting under the spreading branches I could not help wondering that no painter had been induced to exert his talents in describing this tree as it ought to be—alone… it should stand in the picture as it does in nature unrivalled.”

This work will be shipped unframed

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 lot.