A Ghoorka Sepoy

Indian

Gurkha Museum

circa 1815

This work depicts a Gurkha at the time of the Nepal Wars, 1814-1816, and is part of a large series (mostly Indian, not Gurkha) commissioned by William Fraser, an employee of the East India Company at the request of his elder brother. This one is painted by an unknown artist at Saharanpur or Delhi. William Fraser employed the recently recruited Gurkhas as a body guard and escort and he played a key role in creating the first Gurkha regiments.

• Medium: gouache on paper
• Dimensions: 19 x 14.6cm
• Art Fund Grant: £8000 ( Total: £16,000)
• ArtFunded in: 2004
• Vendor: Charles Greig

Provenance

Commissioned by William Fraser; sent to Fraser House near Inverness as part of an album; discovered by Malcolm Fraser in the 1970s; Sotheby's, New York; Charles Greig.

Add your comments about this artwork Hide this form

Have your say