The Great Tiger Hunt - 1818

Manufacture Velay created in 1818 a panoramic wallpaper entitled "The Great Tiger Hunt in India". The motif is inspired by general hunting traditions in Asia, where even the likes of Gengis Khan mobilized their armies to maintain discipline. The action takes place on an island at the mouth of the Ganges, involving local rulers such as the Nabab and the Rajahs. Scenes depict local customs, with costumes and monuments faithful to drawings made on location.
Seeking to enrich wallpaper with motifs suitable for fireplace fronts and door tops, the manufacture created two Indian paintings. One shows life in the palace, featuring the toilet of an Indian princess, while the other depicts the peaceful life in the thatched cottage. These two 5- to 6-foot-high paintings are specially designed to fulfill their purpose, offering unique compositions that stand out from copies of prints common in this field.

In the scene above, find the Main Scene A royal tiger is about to be hit by a Nabab, or Vice-King of the land. In the right foreground, an Indian pierces a jaguar with arrows, pursuing one of the hunters who has taken refuge in a tree. In the second shot, several hunters are pursuing the big tiger, on which, on the opposite side, two horsemen are impetuously riding. In the background we see an old, abandoned pagoda, and in the left foreground a coconut palm and the palmist in fan.

In the one above, find the View of the right bank of the Ganges, In the foreground, we see a palm-dattier; in the background, a temple whose steps are bathed by water, several Indians bathing in it: this monument is adorned with carved and gilded cows. The cow is in great derivation in India; its death, when accidental, is a subject of mourning for all the inhabitants, and they dedicate temples to it. In the background, at the mouth of the river, you can see several European and local vessels.
Also featured is the scene depicting Bayadères, or Indian dancers,these women are highly regarded in Industan; their dances are very voluptuous and even lascivious; . In the foreground on the left, an English family gazes in amazement at a dance by several of these women; behind them are locals and cipayes or soldiers, whom the English train in European tactics and discipline, and incorporate into their regiments; these men form their main military force in India.

In the one above, find the View of the left bank of the Ganges, several monuments, pagodas, etc....
Also find the scene of An elephant mounted by several hunters, chases a tiger that is trying to lunge at its trunk. Private elephants are trained for these kinds of fights (see Bomard); they follow the track of the dogs chasing the tiger, and when they get close, they raise their trunk in the air, first to secure it and then to watch for the moment when they can strike the animal with it, or snatch it and trample it underfoot. The tiger, no less cunning, stops motionless and works to surprise its enemy; it's during this time that those on the elephant shoot it with arrows or firearms. (Voyages de Grand-Pré). It's a hunt that offers little danger.
Finally, there remains one last scene, not represented on his images which is: A view of part of the island where the Tiger Hunt takes place. In the foreground, two indians placed on top of a rock, call the hunters towards the place of danger. To the right is a banana tree, native to India; here and there are various kinds of aloes. In the background, an Indian knocked off his horse defends himself against a furious tiger that has lunged at him. Further on, we see the camp, the rendezvous site.

This notice has been produced from the original Notice de la Manufacture Velay.