Pair Antique 19th Century Indian Miniature Mica Paintings C.1830

Pair Antique 19th Century Indian miniature Mica paintings C.1830
Indian Company School

A pair of 19th Century Indian gouache paintings on mica.

Micas were created as souvenirs – the postcards of their day – as they depicted everyday Indian Society at the time. Created for the colonial tourist market, with many being sold to employees of the East India Company during the 18th and 19th Century.

Mica is a transparent mineral composed of complex mixtures of potassium silicates commonly found in igneous and metamorphic rocks. Its transparency results from heat and pressure build up between layers of rock during formation. Mica consists of many interlocking platelets, resulting in a structure which can easily be split into thin sheets.

Mica has a very smooth glossy glasslike surface and, unlike paper and parchment, is hydrophobic; meaning changes in humidity do not make it expand or contract.

Measures: 22.5 x 27.5cm (framed).