Miniature. ‘A Group of Recruits to Skinner’s Horse Regiment’
India, Delhi; 1815-1816
Leaf: 23 × 37.8 cm
Inventory number 1/2012
The leaf comes from one of the famous Fraser albums, with miniatures commissioned by the two Scottish brothers William and James Fraser.
The motif shows some of the Indian recruits for the Second Regiment of Skinner’s Horse, founded by the brothers’ good friend James Skinner. The soldiers comprised Indians from a variety of different regions, and the name, ethnicity, and religion of each are given on a cover sheet in Persian and English.
The miniature is not, however, simply a factual ethnographic registration. The figures were painstakingly composed and a refined coloristic balance was achieved between the white garments and elegant red headgear that were the everyday Skinner’s Horse uniform.
The motif shows some of the Indian recruits for the Second Regiment of Skinner’s Horse, founded by the brothers’ good friend James Skinner. The soldiers comprised Indians from a variety of different regions, and the name, ethnicity, and religion of each are given on a cover sheet in Persian and English.
The miniature is not, however, simply a factual ethnographic registration. The figures were painstakingly composed and a refined coloristic balance was achieved between the white garments and elegant red headgear that were the everyday Skinner’s Horse uniform.
Published in
Published in
Mildred Archer and Toby Falk: India revealed: the art and adventures of James and William Fraser, 1801-35, London 1989, frontispiece;
Galloway and Losty: The divine and the profane: gods, kings and merchants in Indain art, London 2012, cat.no. 48, pp. 133-134;
Kjeld von Folsach, Joachim Meyer: The Human Figure in Islamic Art – Holy Men, Princes, and Commoners, The David Collection, Copenhagen 2017, fig. 57, p. 247;
William Dalrymple (ed.): Forgotten masters: Indian painting for the East India Company, Wallace Collection, London 2019, cat.no. 101, pp. 164-165;
Galloway and Losty: The divine and the profane: gods, kings and merchants in Indain art, London 2012, cat.no. 48, pp. 133-134;
Kjeld von Folsach, Joachim Meyer: The Human Figure in Islamic Art – Holy Men, Princes, and Commoners, The David Collection, Copenhagen 2017, fig. 57, p. 247;
William Dalrymple (ed.): Forgotten masters: Indian painting for the East India Company, Wallace Collection, London 2019, cat.no. 101, pp. 164-165;
