Posted on: 25 May 2010

The Ghats at Hardwar - 1814.

Watercolour of the ghats at Haridwar from 'Views by Seeta Ram
from Mohumdy to Gheen Vol. V' produced for Lord Moira, afterwards the
Marquess of Hastings, by Sita Ram between 1814-15. Marquess of Hastings,
the Governor-General of Bengal and the Commander-in-Chief (r. 1813-23),
was accompanied by artist Sita Ram (flourished c.1810-22) to illustrate
his journey from Calcutta to Delhi between 1814-15.Haridwar,
located on the right bank of the Ganges river in Uttar Pradesh, is known
for the bathing ghat called Harikacharan, or Vishnu's Footprint, at the
Gangadwara temple. Idealised view of a bathing ghat and temple in
Haridwar. Inscribed below: 'Bathing place at Hurdwar.'

Source : British Library


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Sita Ram did paintings on Haridwar too. He did a painting depicting legendary Maharaja Ranjit Singh's house in Kankhal, Haridwar. The house was later on acquired by Maharaja Lakshmeshwar Singh of Darbhanga. late Maharajadhiraja Kameshwar Singh donated it to Bharat Hindu Dharma Mahamandal, which is running a sanskrit college in the building even today in Kankhal. It has 3 temples, including one of Lord Shiva built by Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

I simply love Sita Ram's paintings, particularly the series of Watercolours that he painted between 1814 and 1815 when he accompanied the British Governor-General Lord Moira on his Official Tour around India.

What a change..!!

awesome.........!!

I spent a lot of my childhood in Hardwar and have deep and abiding memories of the Ganga as it was then, almost four decades ago. Despite the fact that the Hardwar of my childhood was a hundred times more built up than the Hardwar in this painting, this painting captures its essence perfectly - the sky, the light on the water, even the trees. Thanks, Subbiah, for this. :)

just can't believe how much it has changed! Varanasi has suffered a similar fate, too