A son of a local portrait painter August Theodor Schoefft was born in Budapest in 1809 to German parents who had migrated to Hungary. After formal art training in Vienna, Schoefft set out on a great adventure to travel exotic lands and paint foreign scenes while supporting himself on painting commissions as a professional artist. He managed to secure several prestigious portraits including Count Istvn Szchenyi.

Schoefft eventually made his way to India via Turkey, arriving at Bombay in 1838. Once in India he advertised his skills as an artist in local newspapers which led to a number of profitable commissions. In September 1839 at Madras Schoefft received 5,000 Rupees for two full-length, life-siz...