拍品專文
Edward Lear first visited Corfu briefly in 1848. Since 1814 the island had been a British Protectorate, with a large expatriate community. On this first visit he was overwhelmed by the beauty of the scenery. Writing to his sister Ann, he said: 'I wish I could give you any idea of the beauty of this island, it is really a Paradise' (V. Noakes, Edward Lear: The Life of a Wanderer, Stroud, 2006, p. 73). In 1855, looking for a place to escape the harshness of the English climate, he returned to Corfu and spent several winters living there, while his great friend Franklin Lushington (1823-1901) was Judge to the Supreme Court of Justice in the Ionian Islands.