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拍品专文
'We arrived at Hurdwar, the most sacred town on the banks of the Ganges, just eighteen days after we had quitted Delhi. Hurdwar, or Haridwar, the latter being the proper orthography, signifies the gate of Hari - that is, the gate of God; the word Hari being alike applied to each of the three persons in the Hindoo triad. Hurdwar is one of the most celebrated places of pilgrimage in Hindostan. ... The principal gaut, or flight of steps from the street to the river, exhibits a most elegant piece of plain masonry, and is considered upon the whole the most sacred spot upon the Ganges. ... The single street of which Hurdwar almost entirely consists, is parallel with the course of the Ganges, and very narrow, especially where it terminates upon the large gaut. Here the bank is high, and the number of steps to the water's edge considerable; the descent is wide, gradual, and easy. During the annual pilgrimage, these steps are immensely thronged at particular times of the day, and sometimes, during these seasons of concourse, half a million of persons have been known to bathe at this consecrated place in the course of a few hours. The waters of the river are at this season at their lowest, being afterwards swollen by the torrents poured from the mountains during the prevalence of the monsoons. In consequence of their reputation for sanctity, persons of either sex bathe in them indiscriminately without the slightest feeling of indelicacy or indecorum, their depth at this particular spot not being above four feet.' (The Oriental Annual, London, 1834, vol. I, pp.242-6)
The Daniells, accompanied by an escort including two companies of sepoys under the command of Colonel Briscoe, entered the Garwhal hill country in March 1789, the first Europeans to do so. They made their visit to Hardwar (or Haridwar) in the foothills of the Shivaliks, the city one of the Hindus' seven holy places, in early April: 'Colonel Brisco had written to the Rajah, asking permission for the party to enter Srinagar, and whilst waiting for a reply, which could not arrive in less than ten days, they visited Hurdwar, which they found to be chiefly a bazaar 'from one end to the other. It has but one street in it each side of which the Mety of sweet meat Shops are so numerous & of course the flies and fires etc so very disagreeable that it is very unpleasant till you have entirely cleared it. The Gauts are small but exceedingly picturesque, crowded with people from Day light till Day break. ... Un. self and Mr Sturner breakfasted early, when we crossed the River & finished our Views of the town of Hurdwar. Un made a View in the Camera of the old Gaut.' ... It appears from this that William may have based his drawing on that of his uncle. An oil-painting of Hurdwar by Thomas was included in the Madras lottery [The pool and Kashmiri house, Shellim TD18], and a wash drawing ... ; four water-colours ... , one in the Victoria & Albert Museum and two in private hands are also known.' (T. Sutton, The Daniells Artists and Travellers, London, 1954, p.46.)
From the collection of Sir Henry Russell, 2nd Bt. (1783-1852), who went out to India with his father Sir Henry Russell, Bt. (1751-1836) in May 1798, on the latter's appointment as Chief Justice of the supreme court in Calcutta. Sir Henry was resident at Hyderabad from 1800-1821. He purchased a large collection of the Daniells' Indian drawings from the Daniell family between 1840 and 1848 ('a collection of over one thousand drawings in pencil, wash and watercolour, made during the stay of the artists between the years 1786 and 1794', M. Hardy, 'Thomas and William Daniell, their life and work', Walker's Quarterly, nos. 35-6 (1932)), and Indian pictures from the Russell Collection were sold at Christie's, 23 June 1972, lots 85-89, including the present picture (lot 89) and the large view of the mosque at Muttra by Thomas (lot 88, Shellim TD118, now in the Paul Mellon Collection, Yale Center for British Art).
The Daniells, accompanied by an escort including two companies of sepoys under the command of Colonel Briscoe, entered the Garwhal hill country in March 1789, the first Europeans to do so. They made their visit to Hardwar (or Haridwar) in the foothills of the Shivaliks, the city one of the Hindus' seven holy places, in early April: 'Colonel Brisco had written to the Rajah, asking permission for the party to enter Srinagar, and whilst waiting for a reply, which could not arrive in less than ten days, they visited Hurdwar, which they found to be chiefly a bazaar 'from one end to the other. It has but one street in it each side of which the Mety of sweet meat Shops are so numerous & of course the flies and fires etc so very disagreeable that it is very unpleasant till you have entirely cleared it. The Gauts are small but exceedingly picturesque, crowded with people from Day light till Day break. ... Un. self and Mr Sturner breakfasted early, when we crossed the River & finished our Views of the town of Hurdwar. Un made a View in the Camera of the old Gaut.' ... It appears from this that William may have based his drawing on that of his uncle. An oil-painting of Hurdwar by Thomas was included in the Madras lottery [The pool and Kashmiri house, Shellim TD18], and a wash drawing ... ; four water-colours ... , one in the Victoria & Albert Museum and two in private hands are also known.' (T. Sutton, The Daniells Artists and Travellers, London, 1954, p.46.)
From the collection of Sir Henry Russell, 2nd Bt. (1783-1852), who went out to India with his father Sir Henry Russell, Bt. (1751-1836) in May 1798, on the latter's appointment as Chief Justice of the supreme court in Calcutta. Sir Henry was resident at Hyderabad from 1800-1821. He purchased a large collection of the Daniells' Indian drawings from the Daniell family between 1840 and 1848 ('a collection of over one thousand drawings in pencil, wash and watercolour, made during the stay of the artists between the years 1786 and 1794', M. Hardy, 'Thomas and William Daniell, their life and work', Walker's Quarterly, nos. 35-6 (1932)), and Indian pictures from the Russell Collection were sold at Christie's, 23 June 1972, lots 85-89, including the present picture (lot 89) and the large view of the mosque at Muttra by Thomas (lot 88, Shellim TD118, now in the Paul Mellon Collection, Yale Center for British Art).