Bird's eye view of the lodge at Hougli

A bird's eye view of the lodge at Hougly.

The lodge is surrounded by a wide wall made up of small compartments. The complex itself comprises two elongated buildings, situated respectively to the left and right of the main entrance. In the left corner of the lodge an exaggeratedly tall flagpole juts into the sky. To the right lie the kitchen gardens tended by the Bengalis. A Dutch lady, accompanied by a gentleman and a servant with parasol, strolls through the gardens. To the left of the lodge, near a timberyard, are tents and huts in which goods are stored prior to transport. To the upper right of the lodge is a tangh, or watering hole, through which a rider wades his mount. A curious tableau is depicted on the shore of the Ganges: a figure leaps on a burning pyre as a group of natives and Dutch look on. Towards the top of the painting, in the centre, a large procession of Bengalis come walking down a path preceded by a Dutch bugler on a horse and two flag carriers holding high the Dutch tricolour. In the centre of the procession two Dutch people are borne in a palanquin. The procession winds its way towards an encampment to their left.