India collection
Indian pangolin, Manis crassicaudata, watercolour by Llewellyn Fidlor, 1827. This nocturnal animal is the only mammal with large overlapping scales on its body. It is found across India wherever there is an abundance of termites, its main food source.
The stunning diversity of India’s flora and fauna is captured in over 30,000 artworks at the Natural History Museum dating from the 1750s to the 20th century. Many were created or commissioned by employees of the British East India Company at a time when it was expanding its territory across India.
Here you can browse highlights from the collection, and gain insights into the company's commercial and political interests and how the scientific classification of nature helped it to achieve success.
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India collection art highlights
View a selection of paintings showing Indian wildlife that caught the attention of East India Company employees, including eye-catching insects and plants of medicinal and economic importance.
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Art of India: Empire and the natural world
Find out more about the collection in this video. Discover why understanding India’s natural world was crucial to the East India Company and how plants such as tea helped to make it rich.
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An artist's perspective
Watch a video about the new work that Sunoj D, a contemporary artist from India, produced in response to the India collection and find out what inspired him.
The Art of India book
Enjoy 200 years of beautiful Indian natural history art from the Museum's vast collection in our new book, The Art of India.
