Lot Essay
Sikander Begum assumed full ruling rights on the death of her husband in 1847. It is possible that Hardinge may have visited Bhopal then to establish the succession. Her daughter Shah Jehan Begum inherited the title in 1858. Bhopal (the capital of the modern state of Madhya Pradesh) was ruled by three generations of women. The artist was the brother of John Frederick Lewis (1805-1876) and was named after his father, the famous engraver. During his four tours of India (one of them lasting 10 years, 1839-48), Lewis was mainly occupied painting portraits of rajas, governors and residents. Between 1845 and 1846 Lewis was in Mysore. He reached Murshidabad in Bengal by 1847 possibly via Bhopal. Many of 'Indian' Lewis's original works are now lost, either ruined by the climate or mislaid. Several of his large portrait groups were engraved by his father. We are grateful to the artist's grandson Major General Michael Lewis for confirming the attribution.