WALES, James; engraved by DANIELL, Thomas

This impression comes from the 1816 collected edition of the celebrated Oriental Scenery, one of the most important illustrated works on the architecture and antiquities of India. The plate was originally engraved for the Ellora series and later incorporated into the complete folio edition issued in 1816.

The plate depicts the impressive interior of Dhumar Lena (Cave 29) at Ellora, one of the largest Hindu cave temples in the complex. The composition captures the monumental pillared hall opening onto a sacred water tank, flanked by sculptured lions and surrounded by massive rock-cut architecture. Large sculptural panels depicting Hindu deities line the walls, while the partially collapsed roof above reveals the natural basalt outcrop and vegetation growing overhead. The dramatic use of light and shadow emphasizes both the vast scale of the excavation and the romantic atmosphere that characterizes the Daniells’ finest architectural views.

James Wales was among the earliest European artists to record the cave temples of western India during the 1790s. After his death, his drawings were engraved and published by Thomas Daniell, preserving an invaluable visual record of Ellora before modern archaeological intervention. The resulting series remains one of the most important illustrated surveys of India’s rock-cut monuments produced during the early nineteenth century and is highly sought after by collectors and institutions alike.

reff. Abbey, J.R., Travel in Aquatint and Lithography 1770–1860, Abbey Travel 420; Daniell, Thomas & William, Hindoo Excavations in the Mountain of Ellora (London, 1803); Sutton, Thomas, The Daniells: Artists and Travellers (1954); Archer, Mildred, Early Views of India.