Painting of the tomb of Shams ud-Din Iltutmish, Qutub Minar, Delhi by William Simpson, pencil and watercolour on paper, London, 1865

Painting of the tomb of Shams ud-Din Iltutmish, founder of the Delhi Sultanate, in the Qutub Minar Complex in Delhi, India. The red sandstone structure that contains the mausoleum is similar to the Alai Darwaza in the same complex, with inscriptions from the Quran carved onto the surfaces of the inner walls. The white marble tomb is austere, composed mainly of plain dressed stones. A few men carrying lathis and firearms are present on the scene.

Purchased from Messrs Day and Son Ltd (London) in 1869

William Simpson (1823 - 1899), born in Glasgow, was a distinguished watercolourist and war artist. Following a seven-year apprenticeship with a specialist lithographic firm, he moved to London in February 1851 and found employment with Day and Sons. Having established his reputation by documenting the Crimean war in 1854, he was commissioned to sketch well-known sites in and around Delhi associated with the Revolt of 1857 against the rule of the British East India Company.

Simpson arrived in Calcutta (Kolkata) at the end of October 1859 and travelled extensively. Throughout his life, he kept careful diaries, and his hundreds of sketches and pictures form an invaluable record of his travels. He planned to produce four large volumes with approximately 250 plates to be lithographed as illustrations. He spent seven years on the project – three years making preparatory works and the rest in London working his sketches into finished paintings. His life and work in India resulted in these highly coloured, evocative, and romantic interpretations of the landscape and architecture.

While Simpson was away, Day and Son had been drifting into debt. In 1867, before it finally went into liquidation at the end of the year, Simpson was made a company shareholder as part payment for his work. Two years later, his collection of 250 watercolours were sold as bankrupt stock. The V&A purchased 44 original watercolours from Day & Son, Limited (London) in 1869.

William Simpson (1823 - 1899) was a distinguished watercolourist and war artist. Having established his reputation by documenting the Crimean war in 1854, Day and Sons, the London lithography firm, commissioned him to sketch well-known sites in and around Delhi associated with the Revolt of 1857 by Indians against the rule of the British East India Company.

Simpson arrived in Calcutta (Kolkata) in 1859 and travelled widely. His rapid pencil drawings formed the preparatory studies for his finished watercolours done after his return to London in 1862. His detailed journal, sketches and pictures from India resulted in these highly coloured, evocative, and romantic interpretations of the landscape and architecture.

This watercolour, completed in London, shows the tomb of Shams ud-Din Iltutmish, founder of the Delhi Sultanate, in the Qutub Minar Complex in Delhi, India. Simpson arrived in Delhi on 29th December 1859, where he would have visited the Qutub Minar complex.

1165-1869