- Description
-
- Creator(s)
- Thomas Girtin (1775-1802)
- Title
-
- A Cleric Preaching from a Pulpit
- Date
- 1802
- Medium and Support
- Graphite, watercolour and pen and ink on paper
- Dimensions
- 18.5 × 15 cm, 7 ¼ × 6 in
- Inscription
‘gone to St. Cloud - the Keys are in the pocket of my / Blk Silk waistcoat’ along the right edge, by Thomas Girtin
- Object Type
- Copy from an Unknown Source
- Subject Terms
- Figure Study
-
- Collection
- Catalogue Number
- TG1903
- Description Source(s)
- Auction Catalogue
Provenance
Bought by Leonard Gordon Duke (1890-1971) (D2091) from a shop in Godalming as 'unattributed', 1s; ... Sotheby’s, 8 April 1998, lot 14, £3,680
Other entries in Picturesque Views in Paris and Other French Subjects

The Tuileries Palace and the Pont Royal, Taken from the Quai d’Orsay: Pencil Study for Plate One of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Tuileries Palace and the Pont Royal, Taken from the Quai d’Orsay: Colour Study for Plate One of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

The Louvre and the Pont Royal, Taken from the Pont Neuf: Pencil Study for Plate Two of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Louvre and the Pont Royal, Taken from the Pont Neuf: Colour Study for Plate Two of Picturesque Views in Paris
Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge

The Ile de la Cité, with the Louvre and the Pont Neuf in the Distance, Taken from the Pont Marie: Pencil Study for Plate Three of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

Paris with the Louvre, Taken from the Pont Marie: Copy of Plate Three of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

The Ile de la Cité, with the Louvre and the Pont Neuf in the Distance, Taken from the Pont Marie: Colour Study for Plate Three of Picturesque Views in Paris
Chazen Museum of Art, University of Wisconsin – Madison

Pont Saint Michel, from the Pont Neuf: Pencil Study for Plate Four of 'Picturesque Views in Paris'
British Museum, London

Pont Saint Michel, from the Pont Neuf: Colour Study for Plate Four of 'Picturesque Views in Paris'
Private Collection

Paris: The Isle de la Cité and the River Seine, Taken from the Pont Neuf
Private Collection

A Panoramic View of Paris from Chaillot, Looking up the Seine with the Dome of Les Invalides: Pencil Study for Plate Five of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

Panoramic View of Paris from Chaillot, Looking up the Seine with the Dome of Les Invalides: Colour Study for Plate Five of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

The Banks of the Seine, with the Dome of Les Invalides
Private Collection

The Tuileries Palace and the Pont Royal: Pencil Study for Plate Six of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

The Tuileries Palace and the Pont Royal, Taken from the Pont de la Concorde: Pencil Study for Plate Six of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Tuileries Palace and the Pont Royal, Taken from the Pont de la Concorde: Colour Study for Plate Six of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

The Pont Neuf, Part of the Louvre, Notre Dame and the College of the Four Nations: Pencil Study for Plate Seven of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Pont Neuf, Part of the Louvre, Notre Dame and the College of the Four Nations: Colour Study for Plate Seven of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

The Pont Neuf and the Mint: Pencil Study for Plate Eight of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Pont Neuf and the Mint: Colour Study for Plate Eight of Picturesque Views in Paris
National Gallery of Art, Washington

Part of the Pont Neuf, with the Mint: Pencil Study for Plate Eight of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

The Pont au Change, the Théâtre de la Cité, the Pont Neuf and the Conciergerie Prison, Taken from the Pont Notre Dame: Pencil Study for Plate Nine of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Pont au Change, the Théâtre de la Cité, the Pont Neuf and the Conciergerie Prison, Taken from the Pont Notre Dame: Colour Study for Plate Nine of Picturesque Views in Paris
Aberdeen Art Gallery

The Porte Saint-Denis, Viewed from the Suburbs: Possible Colour Study for Plate Ten of Picturesque Views in Paris
Musée Carnavalet, Histoire de Paris

The Porte Saint-Denis, Viewed from the Suburbs: Possible Colour Study for Plate Ten of Picturesque Views in Paris
Tate, London

The Pont de la Tournelle and Notre Dame, Taken from the Arsenal: Pencil Study for Plate Eleven of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Pont de la Tournelle and Notre Dame, Taken from the Arsenal: Colour Study for Plate Eleven of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

The Pantheon, from the Arsenal, Looking across the Seine: Pencil Study for Plate Twelve of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Pantheon, from the Arsenal, Looking across the Seine: Colour Study for Plate Twelve of Picturesque Views in Paris
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

The Pantheon, from the Arsenal, Looking across the Seine: Pencil Study for Plate Twelve of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

Bellevue and the Pont de Sèvres, Taken from near the Pont de Saint-Cloud: Pencil Study for Plate Thirteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

Bellevue and the Pont de Sèvres, Taken from the Terrace near the Pont de Saint-Cloud: Colour Study for Plate Thirteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

The Palace and Village of Choisy from the Banks of the Seine: Pencil Study for Plate Fourteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Palace and Village of Choisy from the Banks of the Seine: Colour Study for Plate Fourteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

The Water Works at Marly, Saint-Germain-en-Laye in the Distance: Pencil Study for Plate Fifteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Water Works at Marly, Saint-Germain-en-Laye in the Distance: Colour Study for Plate Fifteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

The View from the Palace Terrace at Saint-Germain-en-Laye, the Aqueduct of Marly in the Distance: Pencil Study for Plate Sixteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The View from the Palace Terrace at Saint-Germain-en-Laye, the Aqueduct of Marly in the Distance: Colour Study for Plate Sixteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Providence

The Village of Chaillot, Taken from the Pont de la Concorde: Pencil Study for Plate Seventeen of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Village of Chaillot, Taken from the Pont de la Concorde: Colour Study for Plate Seventeen of Picturesque Views in Paris
Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton

Saint-Cloud and Mont Calvaire, Taken from the Pont de Sèvres: Pencil Study for Plate Eighteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

Saint-Cloud and Mont Calvaire, Taken from the Pont de Sèvres: Colour Study for Plate Eighteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

The Banks of the Marne below the Bridge at Charenton: Pencil Study for Plate Twenty of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Banks of the Marne below the Bridge at Charenton: Colour Study for Plate Twenty of Picturesque Views in Paris
Untraced Public Collection, Israel

The Champ de Mars, Seen from the Trocadéro, with Sèvres in the Distance: Unused Pencil Study for Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Watermill above the Bridge at Charenton, near Paris
British Museum, London

The Watermill above the Bridge at Charenton: Pencil Study for Plate Nineteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
British Museum, London

The Watermill above the Bridge at Charenton: Colour Study for Plate Nineteen of Picturesque Views in Paris
Private Collection

La Rue Saint-Denis, Paris: A Scene for Thomas Dibdin's Pantomime Harlequin's Habeas
Private Collection, Norfolk

Paris: Porte Saint-Denis and the Boulevard Saint-Denis
Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Part of the Tuileries Palace with the Louvre (Place du Carrousel)
The Higgins, Bedford

Part of the Tuileries Palace with the Louvre (Place du Carrousel)
Blanton Museum of Art, The University of Texas at Austin

Paris: View over the Rooftops towards Montmartre
British Museum, London

Paris: The Ruins of the Roman Baths, Hôtel de Cluny
Tate, London

Paris: The Ruins of the Roman Baths, Hôtel de Cluny
The Whitworth, The University of Manchester

A Sheet of Figure Studies
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

A Sheet of Figure Studies Relating to Picturesque Views in Paris
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

A Sheet of Figure Studies: Women Washing Clothes at a River
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

Studies of Women and Men, Including an Advocate Pleading
Private Collection

Paris: The Hôtel de Ville and the Church of Saint-Jean-en-Grève
Private Collection, Norfolk

The Church of Saint Corneille at Compiègne
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

The Porte Chapelle, Compiègne
Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Paris: The Entrance to the Hôtel du Grand Prieur du Temple
British Museum, London

An Interior View of the Nave of Laon Cathedral
British Museum, London

A Wooded River in an Extensive Landscape
Private Collection

A River Scene with a Castle on a Cliff
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

A Wooded Landscape with a Hermit
Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Buildings by a Road, with Passing Figures
Private Collection
Footnotes
- 1 Holcroft’s unique eye-witness account of Girtin at work during the excursions they undertook in and around Paris in the early spring of 1802, published in the second volume of Travels from Hamburg, through Westphalia, Holland, and the Netherlands, to Paris, is transcribed in the Documents section of the Archive (1802 – Item 1).
Revisions & Feedback
The website will be updated from time to time and, when changes are made, a PDF of the previous version of each page will be archived here for consultation and citation.
Please help us to improve this catalogue
If you have information, a correction or any other suggestions to improve this catalogue, please contact us.
About this Work
Although there is often a humorous element to Girtin’s figures, nowhere else does he come as close to caricature as in this study of a cross-eyed cleric. The watercolour was produced on a sheet of paper that was also used for a message from Girtin that reads: ‘gone to St. Cloud – the Keys are in the pocket of my Blk Silk waistcoat’. This may have been addressed to John Samuel Hayward (1778–1822), with whom Girtin seems to have shared lodgings, and it refers specifically to one of the excursions that the artist undertook in the company of Thomas Holcroft (1745–1809) to ‘take views in the environs of Paris’ (Holcroft, 1804, vol.2, p.488).1 According to Holcroft’s detailed account, this excursion to some of the sites ‘esteemed the most picturesque’ by contemporary artists took two days and included, in addition to the picturesque riverside location of Saint-Cloud, the formal gardens and parks at Versailles and St Germain-en-Laye. The expedition resulted in sketches that formed the basis for seven plates for the Picturesque Views in Paris, including Saint-Cloud and Mont Calvaire, Taken from the Pont de Sèvres (TG1886a). The inscription certainly fixes the subject as French, but the study is so uncharacteristic of Girtin’s practice that were it not for the content of the message, it is unlikely that the work would have been attributed to the artist. I suspect that the explanation for such an unusual study is that the drawing was actually copied from a satirical print; certainly, it is not possible to imagine how else it might have been produced since sketching in church in watercolours was hardly a practical option in post-revolutionary France.
The reverse of the sheet features a study of foliage in watercolour, pencil, and pen and ink. Sadly, no image of it is known.
1802
Saint-Cloud and Mont Calvaire, Taken from the Pont de Sèvres: Pencil Study for Plate Eighteen of ‘Picturesque Views in Paris’
TG1886a