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Lot Essay
This particularly fine pair of panoramic views give a dramatic sense of the Cities of London and Westminster, the commercial and political centres of England, as they stood in the mid-18th Century, and before they merged into the great metropolis that we know today.
In the former, the City of London, is dominated by St. Paul's Cathedral, Sir Christopher Wren's masterpiece, which had been completed in its new form in 1710. It rises majestically above the spires of the City churches, most of which had been rebuilt after the Great Fire of 1666 which had destroyed so much of the medieval city. Among the most prominent of these spires are those of St. Bride's Fleet Street, and St. Martin's Ludgate, both to the left of St. Paul's, and those of St. Mary le Bow and St. Christopher, immediately to the right of the cathedral. The forest of spires visible beyond include among others, those of St. Michael Cornhill, St. Dunstan's-in-the-East, St. Magnus, and St. Clement Eastcheap. The Monument, built to commemorate the Great Fire of 1666 and the tallest building in the City after St. Paul's, is also prominent, lying just to the left of the northern end of Old London Bridge (the area where the Great Fire had begun). Beyond can be seen the Tower of London, flying the Union Jack, and in the far distance a glimpse of what would appear to be the old palace of Greenwich. To the very left of the composition is the terrace and Watergate of Somerset House, with its stone stairs leading directly to the Thames. From there, running along the northbank of the river to the east, lie a series of brick houses, warehouses, and wharves, leading eventually to the great medieval structure of old London Bridge. The bridge, built between 1176 and 1209, was the only masonry bridge across the Thames until the construction of Westminster Bridge (finally completed in 1750). Lined with shops and houses, it also had a drawbridge which allowed shipping to pass. However, by the time of this picture the future of Old London Bridge was under discussion and in 1756 the houses on it were removed to allow for the road to be widened. It was finally demolished in the 1820s. To the right of the bridge, on the South bank, is St. Mary's Overy.
The view of Westminster, taken from the east, is dominated by Westminister Abbey and the Palace of Westminster, on the north bank of the river, and Lambeth Palace on the south bank, the centres of ecclesiastical and political power. In the centre of the composition is the then newly built Westminster Bridge, with its fifteen arches in white Portland stone. Construction of the bridge, which was built in response to the growth in the population of Westminster and approved by an Act of Parliament in 1736, was begun in 1739, under the supervision of the Swiss engineer Charles Labelye (c.1705-c.1781). The building of a bridge to span over 1,200 feet of river was by far the most ambitious engineering project of its day in England. Initially completed in October 1746, the fifth pier from the Westminster side began to sink the following spring. This, after much discussion, resulted in the rebuilding of the pier and two arches, and the bridge was only finally completed in November 1750, having cost a total of nearly £400,000. The first stone bridge to be built across the Thames since Old London Bridge, it revolutionised the ease with which the Thames could be crossed. On the north bank of the river can be seen the twin turrets of the old Houses of Parliament and Westminster Hall. Westminster Abbey is shown with both of Hawksmoor's towers which indicates a date after 1744. The most prominent building to the right of the Abbey is Inigo Jones's magnificent Banqueting House, completed for King Charles I in 1622, the first purely renaissance building in London, in front of which, lining the river front, are the splendid aristocratic town houses including those of the Dukes of Richmond, Montagu, and Portland, as well as that of the Earl of Pembroke.
Both pictures are brought to life by Joli's acute attention to the detail of life on the Thames. In the view of the City of London a procession of City barges appears to be making its way up river. This may relate to the events surrounding the annual Lord Mayor's procession to Westminster every November, when the newly elected Mayor of the City of London was conveyed by river to be sworn in before the Barons of the Exchequer in Westminster Hall. Alongside the more elaborate vessels belonging to the City Livery Companies and other wealthy households are more simple ferry boats and other boats used for trade. The northern bank of the river is a hive of activity with some figures apparently gazing at the sheer spectacle of the river and others working from the wharves and warehouses that line the water's edge. Likewise in the view of Westminster a variety of vessels bring the river to life, and the relative size of those nearer to the bridge gives a sense of the scale of the magnificent stone structure.
Joli, who was born in Modena, was the most widely travelled of the Italian view painters of the eighteenth century. After studying in his native city he lived in Rome where he worked for a time in the studio of Giovanni Paolo Panini and then worked as a scene painter in Modena and Perugia. By 1735 he was in Venice, where he came into contact with Canaletto. The Austrian War of Succession (1741-48), however, was to impact on patronage of the arts in Europe and like other continental artists of his generation Joli was drawn to London. He arrived, having travelled through Germany, in 1744, and remained in London until 1748, after which he went to Madrid, before returning to Italy in 1755, where he settled in Naples under the patronage of Charles VII, later King Charles III of Spain. In London he is recorded as a painter of theatrical scenery and he also executed a number of decorative schemes, notably that which survives in the the hall of the Richmond home of John James Heidegger, manager of the King's theatre in the Haymarket (see E. Croft Murray, Decorative Painting in England 1537-1837, II, Feltham, 1970, p.226 and pls. 35-6), as well as views of London and Richmond. Among Joli's clients in London were the 4th Earl of Chesterfield, John, Lord Brudenell and Charles, 2nd Duke of Richmond, grandson of King Charles II.
In his Antonio Joli: Opera Pittorica (Venice, 1999) Mario Manzelli lists twenty-one London views: nineteen in oil on canvas and two gouaches, including several views of the City and Westminster. Among these the present view of the City is closest in terms of viewpoint, to the picture, of larger format (33 3/4 x 50 1/2 in.), sold by the Late Dame Merlyn Myer, of Melbourne, Australia, at Christie's on 10 December 1993, as lot 67 (Manzelli, op.cit., p.105, pl. XXXIX). The Myer picture is thought to have once had as its pendant the View of Westminster from the Thames, of identical size, identified from an old inscription as having been executed for Robert D'Arcy, 4th Earl of Holderness (1718-1788), which was sold at Christie's, New York, 16 January 1992, as lot 42 (Manzelli, op.cit., p.107, no. L7, pl. XLII). Variants of this type, unusually on copper and of smaller format (12 3/4 x 18 1/4 in.) than the present pictures, were sold at Sotheby's on 13 June 2002, as lot 3. In both these pairs Westminster Bridge is shown at an earlier stage of construction than in the present picture, with a number of the southern arches still incomplete.
This pair of pictures seem likely either to have been acquired or commissioned by either Joseph Damer (1718-98), 1st Earl of Dorchester, or acquired by either his eldest son the Hon. John Damer (1744-1776), or his second son George Damer, later 2nd Earl of Dorchester, in whose family the pictures have passed by inheritance. Joseph Damer had married Lady Caroline Sackville, daughter of the 1st Duke of Dorset, in 1742, and was created Lord Milton in 1762 and 1st Earl of Dorchester in 1792. He is perhaps best known for purchasing Milton Abbey where he pulled down the monastic buildings and built a new house for himself designed by William Chambers in Gothic style which was in keeping with the remaining medieval great hall and Abbey Church. Pompeo Batoni painted portraits of Joseph Damer and his wife and children while they were travelling in Italy in 1750 (see A. Clark, ed. E. P. Bowron, Pompeo Batoni, Oxford, 1985, nos. 134-8, pls. 127-9).
In the former, the City of London, is dominated by St. Paul's Cathedral, Sir Christopher Wren's masterpiece, which had been completed in its new form in 1710. It rises majestically above the spires of the City churches, most of which had been rebuilt after the Great Fire of 1666 which had destroyed so much of the medieval city. Among the most prominent of these spires are those of St. Bride's Fleet Street, and St. Martin's Ludgate, both to the left of St. Paul's, and those of St. Mary le Bow and St. Christopher, immediately to the right of the cathedral. The forest of spires visible beyond include among others, those of St. Michael Cornhill, St. Dunstan's-in-the-East, St. Magnus, and St. Clement Eastcheap. The Monument, built to commemorate the Great Fire of 1666 and the tallest building in the City after St. Paul's, is also prominent, lying just to the left of the northern end of Old London Bridge (the area where the Great Fire had begun). Beyond can be seen the Tower of London, flying the Union Jack, and in the far distance a glimpse of what would appear to be the old palace of Greenwich. To the very left of the composition is the terrace and Watergate of Somerset House, with its stone stairs leading directly to the Thames. From there, running along the northbank of the river to the east, lie a series of brick houses, warehouses, and wharves, leading eventually to the great medieval structure of old London Bridge. The bridge, built between 1176 and 1209, was the only masonry bridge across the Thames until the construction of Westminster Bridge (finally completed in 1750). Lined with shops and houses, it also had a drawbridge which allowed shipping to pass. However, by the time of this picture the future of Old London Bridge was under discussion and in 1756 the houses on it were removed to allow for the road to be widened. It was finally demolished in the 1820s. To the right of the bridge, on the South bank, is St. Mary's Overy.
The view of Westminster, taken from the east, is dominated by Westminister Abbey and the Palace of Westminster, on the north bank of the river, and Lambeth Palace on the south bank, the centres of ecclesiastical and political power. In the centre of the composition is the then newly built Westminster Bridge, with its fifteen arches in white Portland stone. Construction of the bridge, which was built in response to the growth in the population of Westminster and approved by an Act of Parliament in 1736, was begun in 1739, under the supervision of the Swiss engineer Charles Labelye (c.1705-c.1781). The building of a bridge to span over 1,200 feet of river was by far the most ambitious engineering project of its day in England. Initially completed in October 1746, the fifth pier from the Westminster side began to sink the following spring. This, after much discussion, resulted in the rebuilding of the pier and two arches, and the bridge was only finally completed in November 1750, having cost a total of nearly £400,000. The first stone bridge to be built across the Thames since Old London Bridge, it revolutionised the ease with which the Thames could be crossed. On the north bank of the river can be seen the twin turrets of the old Houses of Parliament and Westminster Hall. Westminster Abbey is shown with both of Hawksmoor's towers which indicates a date after 1744. The most prominent building to the right of the Abbey is Inigo Jones's magnificent Banqueting House, completed for King Charles I in 1622, the first purely renaissance building in London, in front of which, lining the river front, are the splendid aristocratic town houses including those of the Dukes of Richmond, Montagu, and Portland, as well as that of the Earl of Pembroke.
Both pictures are brought to life by Joli's acute attention to the detail of life on the Thames. In the view of the City of London a procession of City barges appears to be making its way up river. This may relate to the events surrounding the annual Lord Mayor's procession to Westminster every November, when the newly elected Mayor of the City of London was conveyed by river to be sworn in before the Barons of the Exchequer in Westminster Hall. Alongside the more elaborate vessels belonging to the City Livery Companies and other wealthy households are more simple ferry boats and other boats used for trade. The northern bank of the river is a hive of activity with some figures apparently gazing at the sheer spectacle of the river and others working from the wharves and warehouses that line the water's edge. Likewise in the view of Westminster a variety of vessels bring the river to life, and the relative size of those nearer to the bridge gives a sense of the scale of the magnificent stone structure.
Joli, who was born in Modena, was the most widely travelled of the Italian view painters of the eighteenth century. After studying in his native city he lived in Rome where he worked for a time in the studio of Giovanni Paolo Panini and then worked as a scene painter in Modena and Perugia. By 1735 he was in Venice, where he came into contact with Canaletto. The Austrian War of Succession (1741-48), however, was to impact on patronage of the arts in Europe and like other continental artists of his generation Joli was drawn to London. He arrived, having travelled through Germany, in 1744, and remained in London until 1748, after which he went to Madrid, before returning to Italy in 1755, where he settled in Naples under the patronage of Charles VII, later King Charles III of Spain. In London he is recorded as a painter of theatrical scenery and he also executed a number of decorative schemes, notably that which survives in the the hall of the Richmond home of John James Heidegger, manager of the King's theatre in the Haymarket (see E. Croft Murray, Decorative Painting in England 1537-1837, II, Feltham, 1970, p.226 and pls. 35-6), as well as views of London and Richmond. Among Joli's clients in London were the 4th Earl of Chesterfield, John, Lord Brudenell and Charles, 2nd Duke of Richmond, grandson of King Charles II.
In his Antonio Joli: Opera Pittorica (Venice, 1999) Mario Manzelli lists twenty-one London views: nineteen in oil on canvas and two gouaches, including several views of the City and Westminster. Among these the present view of the City is closest in terms of viewpoint, to the picture, of larger format (33 3/4 x 50 1/2 in.), sold by the Late Dame Merlyn Myer, of Melbourne, Australia, at Christie's on 10 December 1993, as lot 67 (Manzelli, op.cit., p.105, pl. XXXIX). The Myer picture is thought to have once had as its pendant the View of Westminster from the Thames, of identical size, identified from an old inscription as having been executed for Robert D'Arcy, 4th Earl of Holderness (1718-1788), which was sold at Christie's, New York, 16 January 1992, as lot 42 (Manzelli, op.cit., p.107, no. L7, pl. XLII). Variants of this type, unusually on copper and of smaller format (12 3/4 x 18 1/4 in.) than the present pictures, were sold at Sotheby's on 13 June 2002, as lot 3. In both these pairs Westminster Bridge is shown at an earlier stage of construction than in the present picture, with a number of the southern arches still incomplete.
This pair of pictures seem likely either to have been acquired or commissioned by either Joseph Damer (1718-98), 1st Earl of Dorchester, or acquired by either his eldest son the Hon. John Damer (1744-1776), or his second son George Damer, later 2nd Earl of Dorchester, in whose family the pictures have passed by inheritance. Joseph Damer had married Lady Caroline Sackville, daughter of the 1st Duke of Dorset, in 1742, and was created Lord Milton in 1762 and 1st Earl of Dorchester in 1792. He is perhaps best known for purchasing Milton Abbey where he pulled down the monastic buildings and built a new house for himself designed by William Chambers in Gothic style which was in keeping with the remaining medieval great hall and Abbey Church. Pompeo Batoni painted portraits of Joseph Damer and his wife and children while they were travelling in Italy in 1750 (see A. Clark, ed. E. P. Bowron, Pompeo Batoni, Oxford, 1985, nos. 134-8, pls. 127-9).