From Asian Affairs Volume 39, 2008 – Issue 3 (24 October, 2008)
Abstract
Oldfield served as the doctor at the British Residency in Kathmandu from 1850 to 1863, during the early years of the reign of Jang Bahadur Rana. Most previous Nepali art was religious art, but Oldfield’s water-colours are of secular subjects and as such provide important information on the architecture of the Kathmandu valley at that time. His work was so accurate that it has helped to guide some recent restoration projects. The article is illustrated by ten of his pictures, eight in colour. They include two pictures of Jang Bahadur’s army closing on Kyaurung , on the Tibetan border.
Notes
All of the illustrations which accompany this article are reproduced by kind permission of the Royal Geographical Society.
The references to the views of Sudarshan Raj Tiwari, Satyamohan Joshi, Gotz Hagmuller and Mohan Khanal are taken from the booklet brought out on the occasion of the 1999 Oldfield exhibition held in the Baggikhana Gallery at the Yala Maya Kendra at Patan Dhoka.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Kanak Mani Dixit
Kanak Mani Dixit is a journalist in Kathmandu who is also involved in civil rights issues, and writes books for children. He is editor of Himal Southasian, a magazine that serves the South Asian region, and publisher of Himal Khabarpatrika, a Nepali language political fortnightly. He was the curator of the 1999 Oldfield exhibition held in Kathmandu.