Lot 148: James Leakey (British, 1773-1865) Samuel Tolfrey (d.1827), seated on a red upholstered chair before a red curtain, wearing black coat, white frilled chemise, stock and tie

Samuel Tolfrey (d.1827), seated on a red upholstered chair before a red curtain, wearing black coat, white frilled chemise, stock and tie.
Oil on ivory, Inscribed W. Samuel Tolfrey/ of the Ceylon Civil Service/ President of the Supreme/ Court of Ceylon, gilt-mounted black wood frame.
Rectangular, 73mm (2 7/8in) high

Three members of the Tolfrey family served in Ceylon's Civil Service and all rose to high office. Samuel, who arrived in Ceylon in 1801 was appointed member of the Board of Revenue before being promoted to the post of Civil Auditor-General in 1806. He married in 1782 a French Aristocrat who had fled France during the Revolution.

Samuel Tolfrey was also a Sinhalese Scho­lar of some note, and compiled the first English and Sinhalese voca­bulary, for which he received an honorarium of £1,000 from the Secretary of State. Tolfrey also translated the Sinhalese Grammar called Sidathsangarawa,and wrote an account of the caste system among the Sinhalese.