Credit: ©The Royal Society
Image number: RS.9733
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Portrait of Alexander Pedler
Date
1917
Sitter
Alexander Pedler (1849 - 1918, British) , Chemist
Creator
Hal Hurst (1865 - 1938, British) , Painter
Object type
Archive reference number
Material
Dimensions
height (painting): 1416mm
width (painting): 1120mm
width (painting): 1120mm
Subject
Content object
Description
Half-length portrait of Sir Alexander Pedler standing and leaning against a high-backed chair upon which is thrown an Indian, possibly Bengali, floral textile. Shown in full Imperial Civil Service uniform, with gold lace collar and cuffs, gold buttons and cavalry stripe. Pedler holds white gloves and helmet in his right hand, his left hand rests against his sword. There are two medals at his jacket breast: Companion, Order of the Indian Empire is to the left as viewed. Pedler is shown with a short beard with waxed moustache.
Sir Alexander Pedler (1849-1918), British civil servant and chemist, was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1892. He moved to India c.1873, where he served as Imperial Meteorological Reporter to the Bengal Government, Professor of Chemistry at Presidency College, Kolkata, where his lectures attracted Prafulla Chandra Ray (1861-1944) to study chemistry, and later Principal of the same.
He also held the office of Minister of Public Instruction in Bengal, an administrative role in the Imperial Civil Service which supported British Imperial rule. The Imperial Civil Service, or Indian Civil Service, was a small elite, composed of officers appointed under Section XXXII of the 'Government of India Act of 1858', that took on the administrative duties previously upheld by the East India Company. It was, until the twentieth century, majority British in composition.
Sir Alexander Pedler (1849-1918), British civil servant and chemist, was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1892. He moved to India c.1873, where he served as Imperial Meteorological Reporter to the Bengal Government, Professor of Chemistry at Presidency College, Kolkata, where his lectures attracted Prafulla Chandra Ray (1861-1944) to study chemistry, and later Principal of the same.
He also held the office of Minister of Public Instruction in Bengal, an administrative role in the Imperial Civil Service which supported British Imperial rule. The Imperial Civil Service, or Indian Civil Service, was a small elite, composed of officers appointed under Section XXXII of the 'Government of India Act of 1858', that took on the administrative duties previously upheld by the East India Company. It was, until the twentieth century, majority British in composition.
Transcription
Hal Hurst 17
4R2
CHAS.H.WEST 117 Finchley Road
SIR ALEXANDER PEDLER, F.R.S. (1849-1918) by H.HURST.
4R2
CHAS.H.WEST 117 Finchley Road
SIR ALEXANDER PEDLER, F.R.S. (1849-1918) by H.HURST.
Object history
Presented by Mrs Saunders, 1925.
The receipt of the work is recorded in Council Minutes: “The Treasurer reported the receipt from Mrs. Saunders of a gift of a portrait of Sir Alexander Pedler by Hall Hurst. Resolved – That the thanks of Council be tendered to Mrs. Saunders for her gift.“ [Royal Society Council Minutes, Printed, 1920-1926, CMP/12, meeting of 22 January 1925, p.253].
The receipt of the work is recorded in Council Minutes: “The Treasurer reported the receipt from Mrs. Saunders of a gift of a portrait of Sir Alexander Pedler by Hall Hurst. Resolved – That the thanks of Council be tendered to Mrs. Saunders for her gift.“ [Royal Society Council Minutes, Printed, 1920-1926, CMP/12, meeting of 22 January 1925, p.253].
Associated place