143-Year-Old Hussain Sagar's Art Sparks Curiosity On Twitter

Asif Ali Khan, a city-based architect and historian, posed a question on Twitter about a simple painting of Hussain Sagar by famous European artist T Schmidtina, probably dating back to 1879.

His question was, "Guess the probable location where the artist sat to paint?" This has made the picture quite thought-provoking and is raising curiosity, with many starting to construe the exact location of the elements depicted on the canvas of the bygone era.

Many, mainly senior citizens, enjoy looking at the landscape and reminiscing about the good old days. Some replied as Sailing Club, Sanjeevaiah Park, banks of Hussain Sagar, west of Secunderabad Cantonment, Banjara Hills, and so on.

"This is the probable location from where the artist sat to paint (see the arrow which points straight at cleave of heart-shaped Hussain Sagar). The bund projection with a tree in the painting (around where the national flag is now) is also seen. The circle is the hillock seen in the painting," Khan said, sharing a photo from Google Earth.

Khan identifies the Khairatabad Masjid, the Saifabad Palace at Kala Pahad, and the Musheerabad masjid.

"The picture was taken between Boat Club and Rasoolpura circle. The promontory housing the boat jetty is prominent. The hillock is probably Naubat Pahad considering it is close to the water. Banjara/Red Hills would be farther. Also, Naubat's right (W) side is steeper than Left (E)," Pankaj Sethi, a history researcher said.