View of Court House Street from Near the South Eastern Gate of Government House

James Bailie Fraser, a European watercolourist and printmaker, travelled extensively through India and published a series of aquatints in England called ‘Views of Calcutta and its Environs,’ between 1824 and 1826. Fraser’s views imbue the city with a hint of romanticism to convey a sense of pride in British rule. He depicts shining white buildings surrounded by lush vegetation silhouetted against a blue sky or monsoon clouds. This view of the Government House is focussed on the triumphal archway at the entrance from the eastern side while birds fly overhead, and people walk about.