"OUR TENT WAS PITCHED BETWEEN TWO SMALL RILLS ON A BEAUTIFUL KNOLL": BEAUTIFUL VIEW OF THE MOUNTAIN VILLAGE OF BADEL FROM THE DANIELLS’ ORIENTAL SCENERY

DANIELL, Thomas and William. Buddell, Opposite Bilkate in the Mountains of Sirinagur. London: Published as the Act directs by Thos. Daniell, September 1, 1804. Color-printed aquatint with hand-finishing on wove paper; plate size 25-1/2 by 19 inches. Matted and framed, entire item measures 34 by 28 inches. $4200.

A lovely view of the town of Badel ("Buddell"), from Thomas and William Daniell's celebrated book Oriental Scenery, a color-printed aquatint finished by hand.

The Daniells' Oriental Scenery is considered one of the finest illustrated works on India. Thomas Daniell and his nephew William spent nine years in India making studies, sketches and drawings of the scenery, architecture, and antiquities that graced the countryside. They then devoted a further 13 years to publishing their remarkably accurate aquatints. In Britain, the impact was explosive. A cult of Indian architecture, landscaping and interior decoration arose, with the Royal Pavilion at Brighton as its centerpiece. The Daniells gave the English public their first accurate look at the exotic sub-continent. Their great achievement still lies in their ability to blend the picturesque with the real, resulting in images that capture the European taste for the sublime landscape, while still remaining faithful to their subjects. The Daniells brought the romance of the English landscape to the antiquities of India and provided England with an accurate vision of this wondrous country.

Of this plate, Thomas Daniell wrote, "Our tent was pitched between two small rills on a beautiful knoll. It being the time of harvest when this view was taken, and the corn gathered in, the mode of treading out the grain by the feet of cattle, is represented in the foreground, and also the collecting and winnowing it; all which operations are performed in the open air" (Archer, Early Views of India, plate 50). Consisting of 144 views, published in six parts, the work was issued in seven stages: three sets of 24 plates titled Oriental Scenery with title dates of 1795, 1797, and 1801; 12 plates titled Antiquities of India dated 1799; 24 plates titled Hindoo Excavations dated 1803; 24 plates titled Views in Hindoostan dated 1807 (this plate was published in this part); and 12 further plates of Antiquities of India published without a title page in 1808. All plates were engraved by the Daniells and all are taken from their drawings save the 24 plates of Hindoo Excavations, which are after drawings by James Wales. See Abbey, Travel 420 (plate no. 145).

Near-fine condition, a lovely hand-colored Daniell plate beautifully framed.