Eve of the Eclipse of the moon, 25th November 1826, Jalsain Ghat, Benares

The present watercolour depicts the temple of Ahalya Bhai at the Jalsain or Burning Ghat, Benares. Ahalya Bhai was the widowed queen of Indore, who built several temples and pilgrim rest houses in Benares in the late 18th Century. A series of drawings of Benares by Prinsep were sold in these Rooms on 9 November 1993 and another version of this watercolour was sold Christie's, London, 5 October 1999, lot 58. It seems more probable from the inscription that the present watercolour was the one lithographed in 1831-3 rather than the version sold in 1999.