Henry Cousens
Henry Cousens was a Scottish archaeologist and photographer known for his pioneering work among the monuments and antiquities in British India, particularly in regions that are now Western India and Southern Pakistan.
Early life and career
He was born in 1854 to Margaret Fitzmaurice and Henry Cousens Sr, in Renfrewshire, Scotland, UK.Career
After his studies, he arrived in India and joined the Western division of the Archeological Survey of India in 1881. In 1891, he was promoted to the Superintendent post, where he served for nearly 20 years, retiring in 1910. With a team of artists and draftsmen, he visited remote archaeological and historic sites, surveyed the ruins and sites, and documented — with photographs — caves, temples, and other antiquarian sites.Reception
Cousens meticulous measurements, sketches, photographs and reports were in many cases the earliest reports of historic sites in these parts of India and Pakistan and brought them to the notice of wider scholarship within India, as well as Europe and the United States. His collaboration with James Burgess produced a series of publications, cited throughout the 20th and 21st century. These were praised as of high quality, "beautiful photographs of temples and mosques", and important contributions by his peers:According to John Marshall, Cousens' success at the Archeological department brought his team added responsibilities where the British India government sought to preserve the local heritage, its ancient monuments and further explore buried remains. Cousens effort helped clean up, restore and start this process of preserving India's heritage in Sindh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.