Watercolor on paper                                                        Signed lower right

Framed 19 1/4" L x 14 1/4" H                                          Unframed 11 1/2" x 6 1/2"

 

Legend: A 38 Gun Frigate 1790, 900 to 1000 tons

 

Presented is an original watercolor of the Royal Navy's 38 Gun Class that spanned the years 1793 - 1815. They were about 940 to 1000 tonnes and 146 to 150 feet long. Most were copied from French designs or were captured from the French. They carried a combination of long guns and carronades totaling 38, and by June of 1813, there were 80 on the list, making more of this type frigate than any other.

For example, the HMS Pomone had been the French Astree, captured at the surrender of Mauritius in The Mauritius Campaign. She had been built at Genoa to the same specifications by Jacques-Noël Sané that had earlier been used for the frigate Virginie that, like so many other French frigates, had also been taken prize by the Royal Navy. The Pomone was broken up in 1816. The data below are for HMS Pomone (Winfield 181):
Launched	Length	Keel	Breadth	Hold	Tonnage	Crew
1809	152'	127' 6"	40' 2"	12' 9"	1093 42/94	300
Armament: Upper Deck twenty-eight 18-pound longs guns, Quarterdeck fourteen 32-pound carronades, Forecastle two 9-pound long guns and two 32-pound carronades

The watercolor is an atypical three quarter bow view with the vessel laying on her beam's ends for the purpose of cleaning the bottom. The process was called careening. The artist used tones of Grey, white, and black with a brilliant "gun" stripe in yellow which dramatizes the ships graceful lines.

 

 

 

 

The legend gives the details of the vessel. The painting is archival mounted and framed under non-glare, UV protected glass in distressed wood with the inner edge surrounded by cannon balls, and with a complementary Grey matt.

 

The painting is signed in the lower right, H. Fletcher. The artist is not listed, but is known to have done a large number of watercolor paintings, primarily of ships of the period between 1700 and 1860, which includes some noteworthy studies of uniforms of the officer ranks. Even though he is a highly skilled artist with an intimate knowledge of sailing warships, their armament and rigging, no formal listing of him can be found in various published works and on the internet.

 

A companion painting framed to the same size is available of the Fourth HMS Victory of 1837 is shown below. For details see, http://landandseacollection.com/id937.html

 

CONSERVATION & FRAMING: The paper was cleaned and stabilized to archival standards by a conservation specialist. The matts are acid free and mounted to archival standards and covered with non-glare, UV protected glass.

Refs:

Nelson's Navy; The ships, men, and Organization, 1793 - 1815; Brian Lavery, 1994

D.Brook-Hart - Marine Painting
D.Brook-Hart - 20th Century Marine Paining.
E.Archibald - The Dictionary of Sea Painters of Europe.
G.Waters - The Dictionary of British Artists 1900-1950

Signed H. Fletcher    CONDITION: The painting is in excellent condition with a single tiny spot at 9 o'clock, and is ready to display.   SHIPPING & INSURED PACKING by FedEx Ground to the 48 contiguous States, $30.00 OUR UNCONDITIONAL NO NONSENSE GUARANTEE: If not completely satisfied with your purchase it may be returned within five days of receipt in its original packaging if without damage. Return items must be insured for their full value. Only a prior email authorization from us for the return is required. Shipping charges are included in this offer within the continental United States if an error is due to our fault. International buyers welcome , but inquire first. We have satisfied customers in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Chile, Republic of China, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Denmark, Estonia, England, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Martinique, Mexico, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Nova Scotia, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, St. Maarten, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, USVI and the Eastern Caribbean. ACCEPTED FORMS OF PAYMENT are Bank wire transfer, cashier's check, or personal check in which case the item will be held until cleared. Our prices are quoted net to seller, but credit cards may be accepted through PayPal for verified members by special arrangement.                                        Copyright 2013 by Land And Sea Collection™. All Rights Reserved. These are rare paintings by an artist who arguably was one of the better18th Century ship portrait painters of his time.