The British Peer outward bound, possibly on her maiden voyage, off the South Stack Lighthouse

Details

Joseph Semple (fl.1867-1874)
The British Peer outward bound, possibly on her maiden voyage, off the South Stack Lighthouse
signed and dated 'J. Semple. Belfast 1865.' (lower right)
oil on canvas
20 x 30¾ in. (50.8 x 78.2 cm.)

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Lot Essay

Ordered for the fleet of the British Ship Owners Company of Liverpool, British Peer was a large iron three-masted ship built by Harland & Wolff at Belfast in 1865. Registered at 1,330 tons gross (1,230 net), she measured 218 feet in length with a 36 foot beam and was intended for the Australian trade. Acknowledged as the fastest ship in the company's fleet until her sister British Ambassador was launched in 1873, she was lengthened by 30 feet and her tonnage increased to 1,478 gross (1,428 net) in 1878 in an attempt to keep her 'up to date' but the reconstruction proved a failure; her sailing powers were spoilt and she never made another really fast passage after that date. Sold to J. Nourse in 1883, she operated under that house's flag until the mid-1890s.

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