The Belvoir Crossing the Smite

The Belvoir Hunt is shown crossing the Smite in the Vale of Belvoir with Belvoir Castle and the village of Pungar beyond. Prominent members of the Hunt portrayed include Mr. Valentine Maher, Mr. Empson, Lord Kennedy, Sir Harry Goodricke Bt., Mr. Holyoake, Mr. Cooke, Captain White and John Ferneley himself. There are two other known versions of this composition which are signed and dated 'Melton Mowbray 1823', one in the collection of Captain James O'Neil at Newmarket and the other at Belvoir Castle, both of which have slight variations from the present work. One of these is illustrated in Sally Mitchell's The Dictionary of British Equestrian Artists and she comments, 'Ferneley painted a number of these hunt scurries. They are full of action and in this one his masterly handling of the sky is also evident.' (Woodbridge 1985, p. 216).

Major Guy Paget describes Ferneley's talent for portraying the field, 'His hunting scenes are animated and uncrowded. You know he is painting what he has seen. They have that same champagne sparkle that Brooksby gives to an account of a hunt. You can ride their runs again with them.' (The Melton Mowbray of John Ferneley, Leicester, 1931, p. 97).