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Sir Charles D’Oyly, Behar Amateur Lithographic Press Scrapbook, [Patna:] Behar Lithographic Press, [1828-30?]

Mounted lithographed title and mounted lithographed plates after D'Oyly by the Behar Lithographic Press, all on India paper mounted on album leaves; half leather bound with marbled boards and leather gilt title ticket pasted on the front boards.

LIST OF PLATES
Volume I: Title page / 1. View on the Hill House (Mr Cleveland's) at Bhaugulpore / 2. Bengal Village Scenery / 3. A Sqall on the River Ganges / 4. Washing an elephant / 5. Untitled (Portrait) / 6. Untitled (Portrait) / 7. Churruck Poojah / 8. Views on the River Hooghly / 9. Balasore Salt Boats laden and light / 10. A Hinddostany Lady of Rank / 11. On the Junghee Road Dacca / 12. H C Anchor Vessel at Saugor / 13. View of Raje Ghat in the City of Benaras / 14. View of Temple near Benaras / 15. Untitled (Landcsape) / 16. Untitled (Landscape) / 17. Indiaman taking in Cargo at the new anchorage / 18. View of a ghat at Dacca / 19. Bengal Cottage Scenery / 20. Untitled (Portratit) / 21. A Ghaut near Dacca / 22. Secunderpore in Ghazeepore / 23. Stiff Gale; Indiaman beating up / 24. Scene in the vicinity of Dacca / 25. The Fort of Chunar from the East / 26. Untitled (Landcape) / 27. Dacca
27 x 36.7 x 1 cm

Volume II: Title page / 1. Near Hadjepore / 2. Doing a bit of Justice / 3. Untitled / 4. View of M Wilton's House at Patna / 5. Untitled (Portrait) / 6. A Composition from Chinnery's outline sketches / 7. The Shunscrtt College at Benaras / 8. Or the River Hooghly / 9. Untitled (Landscape) / 10. Untitled (Portrait of a Lady) / 11. Untitled (Landcape) / 12. View of a Banyan Tree at Hadjeporre / 13. A Nautch / 14. Dacca / 15. Untitled / 16. Untitled / 17. A Composition from Chinnery's outline sketches / 18. Untitled (Portrait of a Lady) / 19. View in Bengal / 20. From a drawing by Mrs Woodcock / 21. View in Bengal / 22. A Native Sewarry / 23. View in the vivinity of Barrackpore / 24. Near Gyah / 25. National Burmese Game / 26. Dead Elephant / 27. Cockatoo at Tea / 28. A Ghat at Patna
27 x 39.3 x 1 cm

Volume III: 1. Chance a Brown water Spaniel / 2. R'Hut Jhattra / 3. A Marhattah Lady / 4. View in Behar / 5. Brenda the property of Lady D'Oyly Patna / 6. Cockatoo / 7. A Native Family / 8. Running Bull / 9. Crib / 10. Peter / 11. Hog Hunting (Plate I) / 12. Hog Hunting (Plate 3) / 13. Hog Hunting (Plate 4) / 14. Scicely gully from the land side / 15. Untitled (Landscape) / 16. Hog Hunting (Plate 5) / 17. Hog Hunting (Plate 6) / 18. Untitled (Hunting Scene) / 19. On the River Ganges / 20. Wild Elephant / 21. On the Jumna / 22. Ally Agah / 23. Untitled (Portrait of a Man) / 24. A Native Lady / 25. Loories / 26. View near Barrackpore / 27. Portrait of a Native of Arrah / 28. Native of Western Provinces / 29. Untitled (Portrait of a Lady) / 30. Untitled (Landscape) / 31. Rajemahal inland / 32. Marriage Procession / 33. Lady D'Oyly ayah and Buxoo Jemmadar's Child / 34. Antelopes / 35. Balasore Salt Boats / 36. A Native Family / 37. Gigantic Crane
24 x 36 x 1 cm

This lot includes a series of 3 lithographic scrapbooks, published between 1828 and 1830 by the Behar School of Athens, an amateur art society founded in the Indian city of Patna on 1 July 1824 – the provincial capital of Bihar, and an important centre for opium and indigo production in the East India Company’s Bengal Presidency ‘for the promotion of Arts and Sciences and for the circulation of fun and merriment of all descriptions.’ It was established by Sir Charles D’Oyly, its president and opium agent for his private use and resulted in several titles, presumably intended for private distribution.

The lithographs were produced on a private press established in the house of D’Oyly and are predominantly his work and that of his wife Elizabeth, with a number of contributions by the society’s vice president Christopher Webb Smith. However, they also contain works signed by two local Indian artists: Jairam Das and Seodial.

While uniformly titled the Behar Amateur Lithographic Scrapbook, each album contains an idiosyncratic assortment of around 30 lithographs depicting Orientalist fantasies of India. Ancient mosques and temples crumble under the tangled canopy of banyan trees; portraits of proud, jewel-bedecked Rajas are bound beside coy ‘native beauties’; age-worn boats meander down the lush banks of the river Ganga. One print captures a tiger hunt roaming through the dense Indian jungle, rifles bristling from the safety of an elephant’s howdah; in another, the evening shadows lengthen over a pastoral scene of Bihari villagers, mud huts, and Gilpin-esque cattle – to name a few.

The Scrapbook (and Scrap Book) series are much less common than D’Oyly’s sporting and ornithological lithographs.

Reference: J R Abbey, Travel in Aquatint and Lithography 1770-1860, 449

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