VERY OLD WORLD! INCREDIBLE DETAIL! Situated about 150 kms inland on the left bank of river Hoogly, Calcutta was founded by Job Charnock, a passing British sailor who settled in the then village of Sutanoti. Along with the neighbouring villages of Gobindapur and Kalikata, the City of Calcutta was born, officially on 24th August 1687, almost three centuries ago. It soon expanded to become an imporatnt trading post controlled by the East India Company. Later the Royal forces of the British Crown built Old Fort William on the banks of the Hooghly in 1696. Calcutta remained the capital city for over a hundred years during British rule until it had to be shifted to Delhi in 1912 because the fervent nationalist movement had made the city a beehive of revolutionary activities. On the other hand, the city's rich and cultured had developed a taste for the arts and under their patronage came about the Bengal Renaissance, when artists and writers of the land synthesized new stylistic elements in search of a unique modern identity. In the post-colonial era, Calcutta has witnessed a population growth of tremendous proportions like most of the country and has expanded in all directions a few times its original size. This can be accredited to the growth in industrial activity, commerce and employment opportunities of the last hundred years or so. The heart of Kolkata (Calcutta) is the Maidan, a large public park. The Maidan came into being in 1758 as a military strategy. The jungle around the new Fort William (completed 1773), which was constructed below the ground level, was cleared to allow the guns to fire freely. Strangely enough not a single shot has been fired from the fort. The treeless character of the Maidan changed almost a century later when trees were planted and avenues constructed. Maidan, today is famous to Calcuttans for hosting numerous political rallies time and again. Besides political rallies, the Maidan is the favorite rendezvous for the sports loving people of Kolkata (Calcutta). Numerous sports clubs of all kinds dot the maidan. Celebrated football clubs like the Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, of national fame have their clubs located in this vast stretch of greenery. The Maidan is a great equalizer - from football played by the under privileged to international horseshows patronized by the elite. The Calcutta Race Course is also located in this area. The Maidan also serves as the site for numerous fairs like the famous Calcutta Book Fair. The Calcutta Book Fair is amongst the largest book fairs in the world and draws huge crowds of book lovers from all corners of the metropolis. The Jawaharlal Nehru Road is Calcutta's most important thoroughfare. It's more popularly known by its older name of Chowringhee Road (after a sixteenth century hermit Chowringhee Giri). Many of Calcutta's tallest buildings including the Jeevan Sudha, Jeevan Deep, Chatterjee International Center, Tata Center and the Everest Building are located on the Jawaharlal Nehru Road. The Indian Museum or the Jadughar, on the J.L.Nehru Road, is the oldest and largest museums in India. It is the ninth oldest regular museum of the world, and is the oldest institution of its kind in Asia Pacific region and repository of the largest museum objects in India. It was founded in 1814 (the building was completed in 1875). Also on J.L.Nehru Road is the Oberoi Grand hotel, one of the finest hotels in Kolkata (Calcutta). The present hotel was bought, in 1943, by Raibahadur M.S.Oberoi, the groups founder. It was used to accommodate 2000 allied soldiers during World War II. Next to Oberoi is the more modern Peerless Inn. The Shahid Minar is another landmark of Kolkata (Calcutta). Originally known as the Ochterlony Monument, it was built in 1828 to commemorate the victory of Sir David Ochterlony and his troops in the Nepalese wars. The busy Esplanade area is surrounded by decaying but stately mansions of yesteryears. Esplanade East is a busy area with bill boards jockeying for space. When seen from the Shahid Minar, the famous Howrah Bridge dominates the Kolkata (Calcutta) Skyline towards the northern end of the Maidan (Esplanade East). The domed building on the left (partially visible) is the Raj Bhavan, the official residence of the State Governor. The other domed building is the General Post Office (GPO). The tall building in the middle is the Reserve Bank of India. The building with the communication tower is the Telephone Bhavan. The tall white building on the right is the United Bank of India (UBI) headquarters.
We pack properly to protect your item! Please note: the terms used in our auctions for engraving, heliogravure, lithograph, print, plate, photogravure etc. are ALL prints on paper, NOT blocks of steel or wood. "ENGRAVINGS", the term commonly used for these paper prints, were the most common method in the 1700s and 1800s for illustrating old books, and these paper prints or "engravings" were inserted into the book with a tissue guard frontis, usually on much thicker quality rag stock paper, although many were also printed and issued as loose stand alone prints. So this auction is for an antique paper print(s), probably from an old book, of very high quality and usually on very thick rag stock paper. EXTREMELY RARE IN THIS EXCELLENT CONDITION! | |