- Description
-
- Creator(s)
- Thomas Girtin (1775-1802)
- Title
-
- Bolton Abbey: The East End of the Priory Church, from across the River Wharfe
- Date
- 1800
- Medium and Support
- Graphite, watercolour and scratching out on laid paper
- Dimensions
- 32.4 × 47.7 cm, 12 ¾ × 18 ¾ in
- Inscription
'Girtin 1800’ lower left, by Thomas Girtin
- Object Type
- Studio Watercolour
- Subject Terms
- Monastic Ruins; River Scenery; Yorkshire View
-
- Collection
-
- Leeds Art Gallery
- (16/51)
- Versions
-
Bolton Abbey: The East End of the Priory Church, from across the River Wharfe
(TG1617)
Bolton Abbey: The East End of the Priory Church, from across the River Wharfe (TG1676)
Bolton Abbey: The East End of the Priory Church, from across the River Wharfe (TG1677)
- Catalogue Number
- TG1678
- Girtin & Loshak Number
- 376ii as 'Bolton Abbey'; and as 'Untraced' (p.207), with incorrect measurements
- Description Source(s)
- Viewed in 2001, 2002 and February 2020
Provenance
Charles James Pooley (1836–1900) (lent to London, 1875); his sale, Christie’s, 6 March 1880, lot 91, unsold; Capes & Dunn, Manchester, 28 February 1882, lot 42; bought by Thos. Agnew & Sons, 26 gns (stock no.6450) for Richard Hurst plus 10% commission; his sale, Christie's, 25 April 1899, lot 38; bought by Thos. Agnew & Sons, 25 gns (stock no.2750); bought by Sir Augustus Moore Daniel (1866–1950), 10 March 1900, £40; the Leicester Galleries, London; bought by the Gallery, 1951, 500 gns
Exhibition History
London, 1875, no.16; Agnew’s, 1900, no.52; Leicester Galleries, 1951, no.3; Agnew’s, 1953a, no.14; London, 1959, no.722; London, 1960, no.67; Kendal, 1970, no.55; Manchester, 1975, no.70; Dortmund, 1979, no.19; Tochigi, 1992, no.45; Leeds, 1993, no.97; Leeds, 1995, no.38; Harewood, 1999, no.16; London, 2002, no.161
Bibliography
Hardie, 1938–39, p.94; Leeds Arts Calendar, vol.5 no.16 (1951), p.5; Bury, 1960, p.14
Place depicted
Other entries in Late Watercolours:
Samuel William Reynolds and Painting for the Art Market
An Imaginary City, with Antique Buildings
Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Providence
Ancient Ruins, with an Obelisk
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
Ancient Ruins, with a Gothic Church
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh
A Classical Composition, with a Church and Column
Walker Art Gallery, National Museums Liverpool
The Arch of Janus, Rome
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
The Temple of Clitumnus
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
Rome: The Temple of Antoninus and Faustina
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
Rome: The Temple of Saturn, with the Arch of Septimius Severus
Private Collection
A Town on an Estuary
Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Providence
A Lagoon Capriccio
Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery
An Unidentified Coastal Landscape with a Windmill
Lady Lever Art Gallery, Port Sunlight
Barnard Castle, from the River Tees
Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle
A Farmhouse, Said to Be near Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
An Exterior View of the Ruins of Lindisfarne Priory Church
Lindisfarne Priory, Northumberland (English Heritage)
Kelso Abbey: The West Front
The Whitworth, The University of Manchester
Jedburgh Abbey, from the Riverbank
The Higgins, Bedford
On the River Medway, with a Boatyard, Beached Vessels and Hulks
Private Collection
Bisham Abbey, on the River Thames
Private Collection
A Classical Composition, with Figures Admiring the Sculptures
The Whitworth, The University of Manchester
An Unidentified Ruin next to a Bridge over a Stream, Said to Be Furness Abbey
Touchstones Rochdale
The Gatehouse of Morpeth Castle
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
Buildings on the River Nidd, near Knaresborough
British Museum, London
Kirkstall Abbey, from Kirkstall Hill
British Museum, London
Kirkstall Abbey, from Kirkstall Bridge, Morning
Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Kirkstall Abbey, from the Canal, Evening
Private Collection
A Distant View of Kirkstall Abbey
Williamson Art Gallery & Museum, Birkenhead
A Village Scene, Possibly Finchingfield in Essex
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
Wetherby Bridge and Mills, Looking across the Weir
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Wetherby: Looking through the Bridge to the Mills
British Museum, London
Wetherby: Looking through the Bridge to the Mills
Leeds Art Gallery
Kirk Deighton, near Wetherby
The Whitworth, The University of Manchester
York: The New Walk on the Banks of the River Ouse
Victoria and Albert Museum, London
York: The Layerthorpe Bridge and Postern
The Whitworth, The University of Manchester
York: The Layerthorpe Bridge and Postern
Private Collection
York Minster from the South East, Layerthorpe Bridge and Postern to the Right
Private Collection
A Farmyard with Barns, Ladder and Figures; A Sky Study
Courtauld Gallery, London
Ripon Minster, with Skellgate Bridge
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
Ripon Minster, with Skellgate Bridge
Leeds Art Gallery
Ripon Minster, with Skellgate Bridge
Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery
A Distant View of Ripon Minster, from the River Skell
Private Collection
Ripon Minster, from the South East
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh
Ripon Minster, from the South West
Private Collection
The Abbey Mill, near Knaresborough
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
A Mountain Stream in Spate, Possibly the River Wharfe
Private Collection
Bolton Abbey: The East End of the Priory Church from across the River Wharfe
Eton College, Windsor
Bolton Abbey: The East End of the Priory Church, from across the River Wharfe
National Museum of Wales, Cardiff
Bolton Abbey: The East End of the Priory Church, from across the River Wharfe
Leeds Art Gallery
Bolton Abbey, from the River Wharfe
Private Collection
Bolton Abbey, from the River Wharfe
Private Collection
The Banks of the River Wharfe, with Bolton Abbey in the Distance
Private Collection
Stepping Stones on the River Wharfe, near Bolton Abbey
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh
Stepping Stones on the River Wharfe, near Bolton Abbey
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Storiths Heights, near Bolton Abbey, from the River Wharfe
Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge
Richmond Castle, from the River Swale
Leeds Art Gallery
A Farmhouse in Malhamdale, Known as 'Kirkby Priory, near Malham'
British Museum, London
An Ancient Oak, Said to Be on the River Ure
Private Collection
Cottages at Hawes, from Gayle Beck
Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery
Cottages at Hawes, from Gayle Beck
Private Collection, Norfolk
Cottages at Hawes, from Gayle Beck
Private Collection
Cottages at Hawes, from Gayle Beck
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford
Guisborough Priory: The Ruined East End
Tate, London
A Distant View of Guisborough Priory; The Tithe Barn, Abbotsbury
Private Collection, Norfolk
A Distant View of Guisborough Priory
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
A Distant View of Guisborough Priory
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
A Farmhouse, Said to Be near Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Private Collection
A Farmhouse, Said to Be near Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Kelso Abbey, from the River Tweed
Private Collection
Warkworth Castle, from the River Coquet
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
An Upland Landscape, Said to Show Etal Castle
Victoria and Albert Museum, London
The River Tweed at Kelso, Looking Upstream
Courtauld Gallery, London
The Eildon Hills, from the River Tweed
Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge
A Distant View of Dryburgh Abbey, with the Eildon Hills Beyond
Private Collection
The Valley of the Tweed, with Melrose Abbey in the Distance
Private Collection
Jedburgh Abbey, from Jed Water
Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge
Jedburgh Abbey, from the South East
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
The Village of Jedburgh
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh
Southampton: The South Gate and Old Gaol
Private Collection
Bristol Harbour, with St Mary Redcliffe in the Distance
Bristol Museum & Art Gallery
A Wharf with Shipping, Possibly at Bristol
Art Institute of Chicago
A Rainbow over the River Exe
National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin
A Rainbow over the River Exe
The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens, San Marino
A Rainbow over the River Exe
Graves Gallery, Sheffield
Lydford Castle, from the River Lyd
Clark Art Institute, Williamstown
St Vincent’s Rocks and the Avon Gorge
The Whitworth, The University of Manchester
On the River Taw, North Devon, Looking from Braunton Marsh towards Instow and Appledore
National Gallery of Art, Washington
Conwy Castle, from the River Gyffin
Private Collection, Norfolk
Chelsea Reach, Looking towards Battersea (The White House, Chelsea)
Tate, London
Chelsea Reach, Looking towards Battersea
Private Collection, Norfolk
A Panoramic Landscape, with Figures Trawling a Pond
Private Collection
Landscape with a Distant Ridge, Possibly Hampstead Heath
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven
An Inn Yard, Edgware Road, Paddington
British Museum, London
The Thames from a Window of the Old Toy Inn, Hampton Court
British Museum, London
The Old Cottage, Widmore, near Bromley
British Museum, London
Shipping on the River Medway
Museum of New Zealand, Wellington
A Farmyard, Probably Pinkneys Farm, Wimbish
Art Institute of Chicago
Farmhouse and Outbuildings, Possibly in Essex
Aberdeen Art Gallery
An Unidentified Village Street with a Church Tower in the Distance
British Museum, London
A Panoramic Landscape, Possibly Showing Primrose Hill, London
Private Collection
Unidentified Landscape with a Distant Rain Shower
National Museum of Wales, Cardiff
Warkworth Church, with the Bridge Beyond
Victoria and Albert Museum, London
An Italianate Landscape with Two Monks
Private Collection
Footnotes
- 1 YRK York Papers, Borthwick Institute, University of York
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
This sadly faded work is one of three watercolours by Girtin that show the view across the river Wharfe to the ruined east end of the priory church of Bolton (the others being TG1676 and TG1677). Unlike the other versions, which either crop the composition to the left or convert the scene into a vertical enclosed view, this watercolour is closely based on its source, an on-the-spot sketch in the Whitworth Book of Drawings (TG1617). This was probably made in the summer of 1800 on an excursion from Harewood House, where Girtin was staying with his patron Edward Lascelles (1764–1814).1 Although Lascelles commissioned a large watercolour of an adjacent view, On the River Wharfe at Bolton Abbey (TG1554), it does not include the priory ruins, and he did not own any of the seven or so rather more conventional views of the site that Girtin painted. Working for the open market, rather than on commission, it seems that Girtin needed to produce a recognisable view of what, thanks to its location on the Wharfe, was one of the most celebrated monastic sites in the country, and the destination for many well-off travellers in search of picturesque scenery. The fact that Girtin found customers for three (albeit slightly different) versions of this view of the east end of the ruins, hemmed in by trees, suggests that collectors wanted a composition that was faithful to the site’s celebrated air of ‘seclusion’ and ‘retirement’, where a ‘luxuriant landscape, composed of abundance of wood, water and meadows’ was said to form an ideal ‘retreat … from the strife and turbulency of the busy world’ (Anonymous, 1813, pp.15–16). This was something of an effort, however, as can be seen from Girtin’s view of the village of Bolton (TG1616). The trees are thus needed to hide a number of modern buildings to the left, whilst the west end of the ruins, out of sight here, was actually fitted up as the local parish church. Tellingly, whilst this version is solely occupied by shepherds reclining amongst their flock, the artist has been careful not to include the stepping stones seen in the foreground of the sketch, a detail that made his viewpoint on the other side of the river practical but that might have indicated that the site was actually all too easily accessible.
In contrast to the more solemn mood of the upright version of the composition (TG1676), which records the scene in the gloom of an evening, the ruins here are brightly lit by a broken, though basically sunny, sky. The difference in the effects is not so easy to appreciate because of the work’s faded condition, which has seen extensive areas of green foliage reduced to a shade of grey-brown lacking in depth and texture, whilst the blue in the sky and its reflection in the river has been lost, and the subtle range of greys in the clouds has also been compromised. The use of just two evanescent pigments, possibly indigo for the blues and gamboge for the yellows, could account for much of the radical change in the work’s appearance. Arguably, this is not enough to completely undermine the effectiveness of the image of a tranquil river scene, and there is still much to be appreciated in areas such as the water in the foreground, where the extensive use of scratching out is combined with the artist’s ability as a pattern-maker to good effect.
1800 - 1801
Bolton Abbey: The East End of the Priory Church, from across the River Wharfe
TG1676
1800 - 1801
Bolton Abbey: The East End of the Priory Church, from across the River Wharfe
TG1677
(?) 1800
Bolton Abbey: The East End of the Priory Church, from across the River Wharfe
TG1617
1800 - 1801
On the River Wharfe at Bolton Abbey
TG1554
(?) 1800
Bolton Abbey, from the River Wharfe
TG1616
1800 - 1801
Bolton Abbey: The East End of the Priory Church, from across the River Wharfe
TG1676