A French officer handing his manservant his hat thumbnail 1
Not on display

A French officer handing his manservant his hat

Painting
ca. 1785 (painted)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
Madras (made)

This is a page from the Boileau Album. The album contains 42 Company paintings probably made by an artist from Thanjavur (Tanjore) living in Madras. Painting in Madras at this early period appears to have been linked mainly to individual patronage. John Peter Boileau commissioned this album. Boileau, whose ancestors were French, served as a member of the Madras Civil Service from 1765 to 1785. He probably had the album made to take back home to England when he retired.

Object details

Categories
Indian Company Paintings
Paintings
Object type
Painting
TitleA French officer handing his manservant his hat (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Opaque watercolour on paper
Paper
Watercolour
Painted
Brief description
Paintings; Watercolour on English paper, A French officer, Madras, ca. 1785
Physical description
A French officer leaning against a table, a dobashi holding his tricorne hat; a pet dog in the foreground.
Dimensions
  • Height: 36.8cm
  • Width: 27cm
Style
Company
Marks and inscriptions
N11. French Officer & his Debash (Inscription; decoration; English; Roman)
Object history
Page from the Boileau Album.
Summary
This is a page from the Boileau Album. The album contains 42 Company paintings probably made by an artist from Thanjavur (Tanjore) living in Madras. Painting in Madras at this early period appears to have been linked mainly to individual patronage. John Peter Boileau commissioned this album. Boileau, whose ancestors were French, served as a member of the Madras Civil Service from 1765 to 1785. He probably had the album made to take back home to England when he retired.
Bibliographic references
  • Archer, Mildred. Company Paintings Indian Paintings of the British period Victoria and Albert Museum Indian Series London: Victoria and Albert Museum, Maplin Publishing, 1992 37 p. ISBN 0944142303
  • Guy, John and Swallow, Deborah (eds.) Arts of India: 1550-1900. Text by Rosemary Crill, John Guy, Veronica Murphy, Susan Stronge and Deborah Swallow. London : Victoria and Albert Museum, 1990, reprinted 1999. 240 p. : ill. ISBN: 1851770224. pps. 200-201
  • The V&A Album 2 London: Friends of the V&A, 1983 Topsfield, Andrew, Two Early Company Albums, pps. 57-62
Collection
South & South East Asia Collection
Accession number
IS.75:11-1954

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Record createdDecember 17, 2002
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O72110/a-french-officer-handing-his-painting-unknown/
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