The Fraser Album is a collection of paintings commissioned by the British Indian civil servant

William Fraser William Fraser may refer to: Military people *William W. Fraser (1844–1915), American Civil War soldier and Medal of Honor recipient *William Archibald Kenneth Fraser (1886–1969), British army officer *William Fraser (British Army officer) ( ...

. It is considered among the greatest masterpieces of

Company painting Company style, also known as Company painting (Hindi: ''kampani kalam'') is a term for a hybrid Indo-European style of paintings made in British India by Indian artists, many of whom worked for European patrons in the East India Company or other ...

. This work is an important documentation of the Mughal empire towards its end. The artwork covered life during the end of the Mughal era. The compendium comprises portraits of villagers, soldiers, holy men, dancing women, Afghan horse-dealers, ascetics, village of Rania and Indian nobles. Some of the noted Mughal painters, like Ghulam Ali Khan, his brother Faiz, and family worked on the Fraser Album, after financial support from the Mughal emperor diminished. There are over 90 paintings and drawings in the album, which came to light in Fraser's papers only in 1979. Most were painted between 1815 and 1819. They are now dispersed.

Select works

Some of the notable Company portraits by Ghulam Ali Khan family, as part of the Fraser Album, are listed below: * ''Three musketeers from Kurnal'' (c.1815–16) * ''Four tribal warriors'' (c.1815–16) * ''Salabat Bhatti and villagers at Rania'' (c.1815–16) * ''Kala in uniform'' (c.1815–16) * ''Kander Bakhsh, a dancing woman'' (c.1815–16) * ''Ummee Chand in the uniform of Skinner's Horse'' (May 1819) * ''A group of courtesans'' (c.1800–25) * ''The Emperor Bahadur Shah II enthroned'' (1838) File:Anonymous - Villagers Grinding Corn, page from the Fraser Album - 1981.248 - Art Institute of Chicago.jpg, Villagers Grinding Corn,

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the United States. The museum is based in the Art Institute of Chicago Building in Chicago's Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park. Its collection, stewa ...

'' File:Elephant and driver, probably from the Mughal Emperor's stable with a hunting howdar, including pistol, bows and a rifle.jpg, Elephant and driver, c. 1815–1819 File:Two miniatures. ‘Kala with Saber Drawn’ and ‘Kala in Uniform’.jpg, Kala, the Sepoy, with Sabre Drawn and in Uniform. 1815–1816.

The David Collection The David Collection () is a museum of fine and applied art in Copenhagen, Denmark, built around the private collections of lawyer, businessman and art collector C. L. David. The building at Kronprinsessegade 30 which houses the museum used to be ...

References

{{Reflist Delhi Mughal art

Select works

See also

References