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Depictions of Chukor partridge and Impeyan pheasant of Northern India

Unknown

1820

paint

From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum

Patna School of Painting Romanticism Early 19th Century Animal Peafowl

Dominant colour

Depictions of Chukor partridge and Impeyan pheasant of Northern India is a 1820 paint by Unknown, a Patna School of Painting work, depicting Peafowl, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.

Who painted this?: Unknown
When & what style?: 1820 · Patna School of Painting
Where can I see it?: Victoria and Albert Museum

About this work

This watercolor shows two birds, a chunky brown Chukor partridge and a flashy blue Impeyan pheasant, both perched on a branch. Details like the partridge’s streaked feathers and the pheasant’s fiery crest look almost real. The soft light suggests early morning in the Himalayas. Made around 1820, it’s part of the Romantic trend that prized nature’s drama over stiff rules. Artists didn’t sign work like this often, so we don’t know who painted it. Want to see more? Look up the Victoria and Albert Museum.

The story of this work

Overview

Two watercolor illustrations from around 1820 depict the Chukor partridge and the Impeyan pheasant, birds native to northern India. The sheets were later presented to a collection in 1929 by Robert Scott Greenshields, who served in the Indian Civil Service in Bengal and Assam.

Read the full account in the museum source.