Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 2nd Mar 1848 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
3 pages handwritten
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Major Robert Gill was an army officer, antiquarian, painter and photographer in British India. He is best known for his paintings, copying the frescoes of the Ajanta Caves. Gill was the first painter – after their rediscovery in 1819 – to make extensive copies of the Buddhist cave paintings, which mostly date to the 5th century CE. His surviving copies and drawings remain significant in Ajanta studies as the originals have significantly deteriorated since his time.
Repository
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
'Extract of a letter from Captain R. Gill, addressed to Colonel Sykes, dated, Adjuntah (Ajanta), 2 March 1848' in which he writes of his season's work copying over 200 square feet of cave paintings which he has forwarded to the Government. He describes the paintings, their composition, condition and colouring. He also writes of his work in measurement and recording details.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Conditions governing reproduction
Language of material
- English
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Notes area
Alternative identifier(s)
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Gill Robert 1804-1879 (Subject)