Splendid Plumage: Indian Birds By British Artist

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With the increasing British involvement in Indian affairs in the 18th century, several civil and military officers of the East India Company started taking an interest in the scientific investigation of local Fauna, particularly birds. Most of them were amateur bird-watchers who spent their leisure moments observing birds. This satisfying hobby soon became a passion resulting in scholarly papers and books with coloured plates, thus laying the scientific foundation of Indian ornithology. A number of these officers were also gifted with drawing skills and theymade charming sketches of Indian birds. Most of the drawings were, however, originally produced by Indian artists working for British collectors and scholars, and many of these were later prepared for engraving or lithograpgy of eminent artists in London. Some of the artists and ornithologists mentioned in the book are James Forbes, an amateur artist and keen naturalist who spent 18 years in India from 1766 to 1784; Christopher Webb Smith and Sir Charles D'Oyly, Brian Houghton Hodgson, T.C. Jerdon, Allan Octavian Hume... This book thus covers the period from the late 18th to early 20th centuries.