A military officer of the East India Company
1765
paint
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
1765
paint
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
A military officer of the East India Company is a 1765 paint by Unknown, a Patna School of Painting work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.
A British officer in a red coat stands stiffly beside a river. Indian painters made these for British bosses in the 1700s. They kept Mughal skills but added European touches. Look at the tree. Its soft edges and light colors copy watercolor style. The river may be the Bhagirathi in West Bengal. See it at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
A military officer of the East India Company stands with a dog and a boy attendant beneath a tree beside a river, the attendant holding a sword across his arm. The scene reflects the transitional style of late Mughal Murshidabad painting adapting toward Company painting conventions, with the tree showing European watercolor influence. The river is likely the Bhagirathi in West Bengal. The work was acquired from Maggs Bros. in London.
Read the full account in the museum source.
