Qua - William Farquhar Serving Tray - Oriole
MATERIAL
Lacquer on wood, packaged in fabric box
DIMENSIONS (L x W x H) CM
33 x 24.5 x 5.5
DETAILS
Qua presents the Serving Tray with the artwork of the Black-napped Oriole from the William Farquhar collection. It serves as the perfect Singapore housewarming gift and souvenirs for overseas visitors and guests.
THE BLACK-NAPPED ORIOLE is an attractive resident throughout Southeast Asia. Orioles build hanging, pouch-like nests of grass, twigs and roots, beneath and between treetop branches. This is one of the 477 watercolour drawings commissioned by William Farquhar, depicting the flora and fauna of the Malay Peninsula at that time.
COLLECTION DESCRIPTION
The collection comprises 477 watercolour drawings commissioned by William Farquhar, the first Resident and Commandant of Singapore (1819-1823), during his prior tenure as Resident of Melaka.
These natural history drawings depict the flora and fauna of the Malay Peninsula, most likely accomplished by local Chinese artists, with inscriptions identifying the species by their English and Malay names.
Farquhar brought this set along with him when he left Singapore, and subsequently donated it to the Royal Asiatic Society in London in 1827. In 1993, it was put up for auction and purchased by Mr G.K. Goh, who donated the entire collection to the National Museum of Singapore.