Postcard

Jumma Masjid Bombay

Jumma Masjid Bombay

Another exuberant, deftly rendered very early postcard by Paul Gerhardt, chief lithographer at the Ravi Varma Press in Bombay. Note the simply drawn mosque minarets, the colors that pull you in while the cart pushes out into the foreground space.

Birth of Shakuntala

Birth of Shakuntala

Vishvamitra was a revered sage in ancient India; this postcard from one of Ravi Varma's most famous paintings shows how he rejects knowledge of his child by turning away and hiding his gaze with a dramatic gesture.

[Original caption] Menaka sent by

Khojak Tunnel

Khojak Tunnel

This postcard shows some of the team that constructed the Khojak Tunnel in Balochistan, one of the great feats of 19th century engineering in the subcontinent. Almost 2.5 miles in length, numerous European engineers helped in its construction.

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