St. John's Church

Plate 12 from Thomas Daniell's "Views of Calcutta" represents St. John's Cathedral, the city's first Anglican house of worship, opened in 1787 and erected near Bukimham House, the residence of the governor general. The land was donated by the Maharaja Nabo Kishen Bahadur, and the building constructed of brick and stone (the latter a rare commodity brought down-river from the medieval ruins of Gour). Europeans are shown approaching the new classical building with a 174 foot spire, modeled after St. Martin-in-the-Fields, London, with Indian tombs clustered at left.
In 1784 Thomas Daniel obtained permission from the East India Company to travel to India to work as an engraver, assisted by his nephew William. The pair reached Calcutta in 1786 and soon began to issue the first topographical prints of the colonial capital. Twelve etched and aquatinted “Views of Calcutta” were completed by 1788, printed and hand-colored by Indian assistants. The images proved immensely popular in India and Europe, and helped to launch a vogue for Indian ornament and design in Britain.