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CUT FROM STONE, ETCHED IN LIGHT: DANIELL AND WALES’ VIEWS OF ELLORA, 1803

These are plates no. 22 and 14, respectively, from the book Hindoo Excavations. In the Mountain of Ellora Near Aurangabad in the Deccan: In Twenty-Four Views Respectfully Dedicated To Sir Charles Warre Malet Bart. Late The British Resident at Poonah: Engraved from The Drawings Of James Wales, By And Under The Direction Of Thomas... CUT FROM STONE, ETCHED IN LIGHT: DANIELL AND WALES’ VIEWS OF ELLORA, 1803

These are plates no. 22 and 14, respectively, from the book Hindoo Excavations. In the Mountain of Ellora Near Aurangabad in the Deccan: In Twenty-Four Views Respectfully Dedicated To Sir Charles Warre Malet Bart. Late The British Resident at Poonah: Engraved from The Drawings Of James Wales, By And Under The Direction Of Thomas Daniell.

These prints bring together early, monumental depictions of the Ellora cave complex, highlighting its architectural grandeur and religious syncretism. These prints, based on on-site drawings by James Wales and engraved by Thomas Daniell, represent some of the earliest British artistic engagements with Ellora and played a formative role in shaping European conceptions of Indian antiquity.

“The caves of Ellora, near Aurangabad in the Deccan, were celebrated for their scale, complexity, and sculptural richness. The Kailasa temple in particular—hewn entirely from a single rock—is considered a marvel of ancient engineering and devotion. These prints by Daniell, based on drawings by James Wales, are among the earliest Western visual records of the site and were instrumental in introducing Ellora’s magnificence to audiences in Britain.”

a) This aquatint presents the exterior of the Viswakarma (Carpenter's) Cave at Ellora—an ancient rock-cut monastery famed for its unique façade, carved directly into the cliff face. The Daniells capture the structural harmony and dramatic verticality of this 8th-century Buddhist chaitya hall, emphasising its ornamental carvings, pillared verandah, and relief friezes.

Regarded as one of the most accomplished architectural renderings in Oriental Scenery, this view exemplifies the Daniells’ mastery of light and linear perspective. Figures seated in quiet contemplation lend a human scale to the massive architecture, highlighting the spiritual significance of the site.

The Viswakarma cave was a remarkable subject, merging religious function and sculptural ingenuity. By documenting this and other Indian antiquities, the Daniells offered the European public one of the first comprehensive pictorial records of India's monumental heritage.

b) This breathtaking print illustrates the interior approach to the Kailasa Temple at Ellora, one of the largest monolithic rock excavations in the world. Carved top-down from a single basalt cliff, the temple was dedicated to Lord Shiva and is estimated to date from the 8th century CE, during the Rashtrakuta dynasty.

The Daniells show the grandeur of the temple’s courtyard, ringed by colonnades and richly carved shrines. The precision with which the elephant frieze and subsidiary temples are rendered reveals not only the Daniells’ technical skill but also their admiration for India's ancient engineering feats.

Foregrounded figures—likely based on on-site sketches from their 1790s tour—animate the monumental setting while drawing the viewer’s eye deeper into the sanctum of this extraordinary structure. These prints played a critical role in establishing Ellora as an architectural marvel in the British and European imagination.

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