Four oil paintings from an early Nelson family, given to the Nelson Provincial Museum in 2005, have been conserved and will soon be ready for public display.

The portraits are of Colonel Charles Thynne-Thomas, his wife Anne, and four young sons.

Colonel Charles Thynne-Thomas was on born 15 January 1797 in Bath, Somerset, England. He was in Her Majesty's 15th Regiment, Native Infantry Bengal Army and rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Charles married Anne Tovey on 2 June 1829. They had eleven children; seven boys and four girls. The portraits were painted at the family's tea and sugar plantation at Dehra Dun in the Himalayan foothills. It is believed that their home is still standing.

The family arrived in New Zealand from India in 1861, settling at Dehra Doon in Riwaka, the property named after their former home in India. Charles made trips to Australia, India and England until his accidental death on 23 June 1874 when he was thrown from a horse drawn carriage.

The paintings are reported to have been damaged on the wharf at Delhi when the family left India. The crate in which the paintings were packed was pierced by the swords of starving natives searching for food. The damage was later repaired with a patch of painted canvas. The paintings deteriorated further when stored in a damp environment. The paintings came to New Zealand without their heavy gilt frames, possibly because they were too bulky to transport.

When the paintings came to the Museum they were not in good condition and it was questioned whether the Museum should accept them into the collection. However as the provenance of the paintings relates to the human history of the Nelson and Tasman regions the museum sought funding to have them conserved. The Museum was successful in receiving a grant from Canterbury Community Trust to enable the conservation work to proceed. Over a number of months local paintings conservator, John Harper, conserved the paintings. They have also been mounted into new frames.

Before the paintings go on public display the Museum hopes to organise a viewing for the descendants of the Thynne-Thomas family. This will also be an opportunity for the Museum to learn more about the Thynne-Thomas family.