Artwork
Pagoda of Siva, Benares
Pagoda of Siva, Benares is a drawing by the Romanticist artist Robert Captain Smith. It dates from 1830 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. This pencil drawing portrays a multi‑spired Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva, positioned on the banks of the Ganges at Benares.
About this work
Overview
This pencil drawing portrays a multi‑spired Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva, positioned on the banks of the Ganges at Benares. The composition includes the riverfront, surrounding trees, and figures near the water, rendered with fine linear detail and varied gray tones to suggest depth and texture.
Subject & Meaning
The work records a sacred architectural site central to Hindu worship, emphasizing the temple’s prominence within the urban landscape of Benares. By situating the structure alongside everyday activity, the image conveys the coexistence of religious and communal life along the river.
Technique & Style
Executed in mounted pencil, the drawing relies on intricate hatching and cross‑hatching to model surfaces and convey atmospheric perspective. The gradations of gray create a sense of volume, while the meticulous line work reflects the observational precision typical of early 19th‑century travel sketches.
History & Provenance
Smith made the drawing during his journeys on the Ganges between 1828 and 1833, completing the manuscript in 1845 after retiring to Ireland.
Created by Captain Robert Smith, a former officer of the 44th Regiment, the illustration belongs to a series of 65 images compiled for his unpublished *Pictorial Journal of Travels in Hindustan*. Smith made the drawing during his journeys on the Ganges between 1828 and 1833, completing the manuscript in 1845 after retiring to Ireland. The museum acquired the piece in 1915 from W. M. Biden of Hampton‑on‑Thames.
Context
The drawing forms part of a broader visual record of British officers documenting Indian architecture and landscapes during the early colonial period. Such works served both personal curiosity and the imperial appetite for geographic and cultural knowledge, aligning with contemporary Romantic interests in exotic locales.
Artist & collection
