Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives

Hughes French India Company School Drawings

Summary

Collection ID:
FSA.A1993.10
Creators:
Hughes, Thomas L., Mr.
Dates:
[1840?]
Languages:
Captioned in French
Physical Description:
32 Items
39 x 25 cm.
Repository:
Container:
1
2

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
A series of watercolor pictures depicting Tamil men and women of various trades and castes. These ethnographic studies may have been rendered for a French official or merchant as identification aides by a local Indian artist in Pondicherry, as the area was under French control as part of the French Indian Territories during this time. The name "Company School" has been attached to suggest the similarity between these drawings and those typically commissioned by the East India Company, especially during the early 18th century.
The format generally consists of a drawing of an individual with information identifying the subject's caste and the activity depicted. Not all drawings are accompanied by identifying information. It may be notable that, while not all of the male subjects are identified in the above manner, none of the female subjects are identified by caste or activity. The regularity of size and shape and numbering of the sheets would seem to indicate that these drawings may have been used to illustrate a bound monograph. Captions are in French. Several sheets are watermarked "J. Whatman. Balston & Co." with dates 1822-1825.

Arrangement

Arrangement
Organized by subject.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Thomas L. Hughes was a prominent official in the U.S. Department of State and visited India during the 1960s; he also maintained collegiate relations with Chester Bowles, a former U.S. Ambassador to India and an influential advocate for Third World aid programs in Washington.

Administration

Immediate Source of Acquisition
The collection was donated to Sackler Gallery Study Collection in 1984 by Thomas L. Hughes and moved to the Archives on December 13 and 22, 1993.
Custodial History
Gift of Thomas L. Hughes, 1984-1985

Digital Content


Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Citation
French India Company School Drawings, FSA.A1993.10. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Gift of Thomas L. Hughes, 1984-1985.

More Information

Local Numbers

Local Numbers
FSA A1993.10


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Drawing, Indic Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tamil (Indic people) Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Ethnology -- India Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
India -- Social life and customs -- Pictorial works Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
India -- Description and Travel -- views Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Drawings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
India -- Union Territory Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives
National Museum of Asian Art Archives
Washington, D.C. 20013
AVRreference@si.edu