A man of Dakar, Senegal, holding guinea fowl and rifle. Circa 1840.

Watercolour on laid paper with watermark of a royal horseman with lance, 200 x 146 mm (sheet); captioned in ink ‘Dackar’ (i.e. Dakar) at bottom left, and with a foliation number ‘114’ in the same hand at bottom right; the sheet is unmounted (verso blank), and the drawing has survived in fine condition – virtually in its original state; removal from a sketchbook at some point is confirmed by the slightly roughened top edge of the sheet, which also shows evidence of the original stitch holes.

This watercolour sketch was made by an anonymous French artist, probably between 1835-45. It is unlikely to have been drawn from life; rather, it is almost certainly after a voyage artist’s illustration in a colour plate book, although done prior to 1850.