Prince Alexis Soltykov

Aleksandr Mikhailovich Saltuikov / Aleksei Dmitrievich Saltykov was born in 1806 in St. Petersburg as a member of an influential and wealthy family. He was a gifted painter and sketcher who, after a relatively short career in the Russian diplomatic service, settled down in Paris around 1840.

From there he travelled to the East twice (1841-1843 and 1845-1846) where he produced wonderful drawings of the people, landscapes, processions, hunting scenes and ceremonies. During his second visit, he spent several months with the Viceroy in Calcutta and crossed the Indian subcontinent.

After his return to Paris from the second voyage he had his letters as sent to one of his brothers, published under the title Lettres sur l’Inde (Paris: Amyot, 1848). Some of the drawings he had made on the spot during his voyages were lithographed and appeared in this book, published in octavo format, for the very first time.

In 1850 these drawings were lithographed by De Rudder and published by Auguste Bry in a large folio format under the title “Voyages dans l’Inde”, after which several subsequent editions were published in octavo format under that same title, first by Curmer & Lecou and a subsequent edition by Garnier Frères.

In 1853 the Parisian publisher H. Gache issued another book in folio format under the title “Habitants de l’Inde” with magnificent lithographs, this time depicting the people of India from the Royals at one end to the deprived at the other end. The last of the great books in folio format was (simultaneously) published by Smith, Elder & Co. in London and Smith, Taylor & Co. in Bombay in 1859: “Indian scenes and characters”, consisting of 15 plates plus a title vignette. Also these plates, after de Rudder and Trayer, were printed by Auguste Bry of Paris.