Recorded in the collection of Maharaja Sit Prodyot Coomar Tagore (1873-1942), at Calcutta, in 1928;
by descent until circa 1960

G. Tillotson, The Artificial Empire: The Indian Landscapes of Wiliam Hodges, Richmond 2000, p. 62, illus. pl. II

STRUCTURE The canvas has been lined. PAINT SURFACE The painting appears to be in very good condition with no apparent damage or loss of paint. ULTRAVIOLET Examination under ultraviolet light reveals some very minor scattered retouching to the areas of shadow on the gatehouse. There is also retouching to an old repaired tear in the sky centre left which which meausures approx. 7in horizontally and then forks vertically for another 7in. FRAME Held in a carved and gilded neo-classical style frame. To speak to a specialist about this lot please contact Julian Gascoigne on +44 (0)207 293 5482, or at julian.gascoigne@laitexier.com, or Ludo Shaw Stewart on +44 (0)207 293 5816, or at ludovic.shawstewart@laitexier.com.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Robert Home is unusual among British artists for having spent most of his long🀅 career working in India. Best known as a portrait painter, Home arrived in early 1791 and this exceptional work is one of only a small number of his landscape views of the subcontinent. It is his only known painting of a topographical subject in the north of the country and is exceptionally rare as an ei🌊ghteenth century British painting of this area, now in Bangladesh.

The&nb🌄sp;Mughal palace on the Buriganga River in South-Western Dacca, known as the Lal Bagh was begun in 1678 by Prince Muhammad Azam, then Viceroy of Bengal. As Mildred Archer notes, Home's sitters book records that he made 'a visit to Dacca between June and August 1799', one of his few excursions from the capital during his period in Calcutta, probably at the invitation of Nusrat Jang, Nawab of Dacca, a great patron of the arts, who was painted by Home. It was probably 🧸during this visit in the summer of 1799 that the present work was painted.