Birchall Tea, a British tea company with a rich heritage, commissioned Steven Noble to illustrate the portrait of Captain Birchall Graham who five generations back in 1872, founded the company. In 1872 he decided to return to India a land he had grown increasingly fond of over his time spent there, joining his brother Robert Fuller Graham. He cleverly used his savings to make a living by planting tea in Darjeeling.
The seeds of a tea dynasty were planted and subsequently Birchall Graham continued in the tea trade, successfully developing the business and acquiring the knowledge and expertise to create the finest teas in the world.
This illustration represents his time when he was posted to India as an officer with the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment where he served admirably for a number of years. The uniform and his pose drinking his tea represents the quintessential characteristics of this fine English gentleman from this Victorian era. The illustration was created in the line etching style and complements this historical period of the late 1800 hundreds.
