Lot Essay
Simpson visited Ceylon twice, once at some time on his first trip to India, between 13 November - 13 December 1862 on route from Madras to Bombay; and the second time in 1871 on route to his journey around the world. It seems more likely that this work dates from his second trip, since he wrote that the first trip only 'gave me a glimpse of Ceylon at Point de Galle' (The Autobiography, etc., op. cit., p.163), while it appears that he actually stopped in Ceylon for a few days during his second trip. Furthermore, the 1875 date indicates that he finished this work from his round-the-world sketches rather than his India sketches. Point de Galle is the southern-most part of Ceylon the name Galle may be derived from the Sinhala gala, rock, or gaala, enclosure - an appropriate name for the natural harbour formed by the curve of land on either side.