Rare Jungle Book Painting to be Exhibited at Kipling's Home
A rare watercolour painting depicting a scene from Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book will be showcased at the author's country home after undergoing conservation work.
The Return of the Buffalo Herd
The Return of the Buffalo Herd is a watercolour painting that depicts a climactic moment in Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book. The painting, created by teenage prodigies Edward and Charles Detmold, will go on display at Kipling's country home, Bateman's, after conservation work.
Edward and Charles Detmold were just 18 years old when they were commissioned to illustrate Kipling's popular story. Out of the 16 paintings they created, only four have survived over the years.
The painting portrays Rama, the great herd bull, gazing back at the plain after Mowgli, the protagonist of the story, uses a herd of buffalo to trigger a stampede to defeat the murderous tiger, Shere Khan. Kipling vividly described the moment as a 'terrible charge' that no tiger can withstand.
The Detmold Twins and their Tragic Lives
Edward Julius Detmold, one of the twins responsible for the painting, signed it with his monogram 'EJD'. Both Edward and Charles had been creating artworks since their early teens and achieved professional success. However, their personal lives were challenging, and tragically, both of them took their own lives - Charles in 1908 and Edward in 1957.
Hannah Miles, collections and house manager at Bateman's, noted the parallels between the Detmold twins and Mowgli, the troubled character in The Jungle Book. She believes it is poignant to display their artwork alongside the book in the place that meant so much to Kipling.
Bateman's currently owns one of the four surviving watercolour paintings, while the other two are in private collections. The third painting is held at the Natural History Museum.
Conservation and Exhibition at Bateman's
The watercolour painting has undergone careful conservation by specialist conservator Louise Drover. The work involved humidifying the painting to remove the old canvas lining. Small repairs were made using Japanese tissue, and the tone was evened out through gentle swabbing and minor retouching.
Bateman's is excited to exhibit The Return of the Buffalo Herd exactly 130 years after the story was published. It offers fans a rare opportunity to witness the story's darker origins, as it was during Kipling's time. The National Trust, which owns Bateman's, acquired the painting thanks to a fund set up by philanthropist Simon Sainsbury.
