Picture Details
Rice plant, watercolour and pencil on paper.
Partner:
Kew GardensImage reference:
ILLUS200.0/76.1ROXOrigin:
IndiaArtist / Date:
Unknown, 1790-1812Donor / Date:
1859Size:
438 x 250 mmDescription:
Click here for more details
The team of artists working at Calcutta under the botanist William Roxburgh (1751-1815) were instructed to illustrate the plants at actual size, whenever possible. For this reason large specimens, such as this rice plant were represented in sections, while for trees only the parts deemed vital for identification purposes, such as the leaf, flower and fruit would be painted.
Roxburgh described how Hindu farmers divided the numerous varieties of rice into two orders, the 'Poonas' or early crops, and the 'Pedda' or 'Pedda Panta', meaning the late or great crops. In his notes Roxburgh talked of a wild variety of rice which could be purchased at a high price, "The rich esteem it a dainty; and to make it still more delicate, they boil it only in steam. A coarse kind of confection, called beat rice is made of it, and sold in most bazaars".
