Boats of Bengal: Eighteenth Century Portraits by Balthazar Solvyns

The Flemish artist F. Balthazar Solvyns lived in Calcutta from 1791 to 1803 and produced a remarkable series of etchings portraying the people of Bengal in their life and culture. First published in Calcutta in 1796 and redone for a more elaborate Paris edition, Les Hindous 1802-12, some 300 etchings, with their accompanying descriptions, provide a rich and detailed ethnographic survey of India of two hundred years ago. With sections on caste occupations, household servants, festivals, religious mendicants, and musical instruments, Solvyns includes a portrayal of the boats of Bengal in 36 etchings.