Elements of Hindu Iconography v1.c2.10

v1.c2.10

After having proceeded so far, it struck me that the chief difficulty in the way of the accomplishment of my undertaking was in securing the required financial aid for its publication. The work required photo-mechanical reproductions of a large number of images, the cost of which alone was quite enough to scare me away from the undertaking. As a matter of fact, I should really have been compelled, howsoever reluctantly, to abandon my cherished object, but for the opportune help and encouragement most generously offered by the enlightened Government of His Highness the Mahārāja of Travancore. The Dewan, Mr. Rājagōpālāchārya, readily perceived the value of the undertaking, and promised to sanction the amount required for the publication of the work. The sympathetic attitude of this highly cultured gentleman at the head of affairs in Travancore afforded a new stimulus and induced me to work with redoubled vigour and earnestness. The required Sanskrit texts were all quickly gathered, but the growth of the collection of the needed photographs did not proceed apace. I then approached the Dewan with the request that I should be permitted to go out on tour to places outside the State, in the Madras and the Bombay Presidencies and also in the Mysore State, to obtain the photographs. The tour was sanctioned; and my visit to these places not only enriched my photographic collection, but was also of a very highly educative value to me. It enabled me to study the various iconographic symbols and emblems directly from the sculptures themselves. Wherever photographing was impossible, there I indented upon my amateur knowledge of drawing and painting. I frequently took pen and ink sketches, and occasionally full-sized coloured drawings of mural paintings, although this latter work was extremely tedious.