Lot Essay
The serried ranks of armies on the shore and the portentous sky suggest that Martin may be depicting some great antique or Biblical battle.
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THE PROPERTY OF A PRIVATE COLLECTOR
John Martin (1789-1854)
Sunset over a rocky Bay
Details
John Martin (1789-1854)
Sunset over a rocky Bay
signed and dated 'J. Martin.1830' [or 1839 - the inscription has been cut with the trimming of the paper]' (lower left)
watercolour, heightened with bodycolour and with scratching out, unframed
9 3/8 x 14 5/8 in. (23.8 x 37.1 cm.)
Sunset over a rocky Bay
signed and dated 'J. Martin.1830' [or 1839 - the inscription has been cut with the trimming of the paper]' (lower left)
watercolour, heightened with bodycolour and with scratching out, unframed
9 3/8 x 14 5/8 in. (23.8 x 37.1 cm.)
Provenance
Norman D. Newall Collection, Christie's London, 13 December 1979, lot 51, illustrated in colour (£22,000)
Exhibited
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Laing Art Gallery, Festival of Britain Exhibition, Tyneside's Contribution to Art, 1951, no. 227.
London, Royal Academy, and Washington, National Gallery of Art, The Great Age of British Watercolours 1750-1880, January-July 1993, no. 210, pl. 221, illustrated in colour.
London, Royal Academy, and Washington, National Gallery of Art, The Great Age of British Watercolours 1750-1880, January-July 1993, no. 210, pl. 221, illustrated in colour.