- Description
-
- Creator(s)
- Thomas Girtin (1775-1802) after (?) John Henderson (1764-1843)
- Title
-
- Dover: Snargate Street, Looking West
- Date
- 1795 - 1796
- Medium and Support
- Graphite on two pieces of wove paper
- Dimensions
- 25.7 × 40.9 cm, 10 ⅛ × 16 ⅛ in
- Object Type
- Outline Drawing; Work after an Amateur Artist
- Subject Terms
- Dover and Kent; Street Scene
-
- Collection
- Catalogue Number
- TG0842
- Description Source(s)
- Viewed in 2003
Provenance
Sotheby’s, 27 November 2003, no.240 as 'Figures on a Street in Dover' by Thomas Girtin; bought by Lowell Libson Ltd, £2,400
Exhibition History
Lowell Libson, 2004, no.20
Place depicted
Other entries in Monro School Copies:
British Views, Including Works after the Outlines of John Henderson

An Upland Landscape with a Rainbow, Said to Be Lowther Fells
Kendal Town Hall

Tonbridge Bridge and Castle
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

The High Rocks, near Tunbridge Wells
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh

The Town of Rye, Seen from the Marshes
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

Dover Castle, Seen from the Beach
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

An Upland Scene with a Wooded Valley
Leeds University Art Gallery

Unidentified Medieval Ruins, with Agricultural Buildings
Tate, London

A View near Keswick, Probably Bassenthwaite Lake
Private Collection

Skiddaw and Bassenthwaite Lake, from the Vale of Newlands
Private Collection

Looking South into Borrowdale, from the Shore of Derwentwater
Private Collection

Mountainous Landscape, Possibly in the Lake District
Walker Art Gallery, National Museums Liverpool

Boon Crag Cottage, with Coniston Water Beyond
Private Collection

A View in Cumbria, Probably Looking from Irton Fell towards Ravenglass
Clark Art Institute, Williamstown

A View in Cumbria, Looking towards Irton and the Irish Sea, with the Isle of Man in the Distance
Tate, London

The River Leven, Cumbria, Viewed from Penny Bridge
Tate, London

St John's Vale, Cumbria
Private Collection

The Lodore Falls
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

Langdale Pikes
Private Collection

An Unidentified Bridge over a Stream, Possibly in North Wales
Private Collection

Derwentwater, with Skiddaw in the Distance
Eton College, Windsor

Beddgelert Bridge, North Wales
Private Collection

A Mountainous Landscape with an Overshot Mill
Clark Art Institute, Williamstown

A Mountainous River Landscape with a Bridge
Private Collection

Cynwyd Mill, near Corwen, North Wales
Brandler Galleries, Brentwood

Conwy: The Town Walls from the South East
Tate, London

Raglan Castle: The Great Hall
Private Collection

A Mountainous Landscape with an Unidentified Bridge, Possibly in North Wales
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

The Iron Bridge at Coalbrookdale
Private Collection

An Estuary, Possibly Dartmouth
Private Collection

Grasmere: Looking North West to Helm Crag
Private Collection

The Head of Lake Windermere
Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Providence

The Head of Derwentwater, with the Lodore Falls
Private Collection

Dover Harbour, with Shipping Being Overhauled
Tate, London

A Two-Master in Dover Harbour, with the Castle Beyond
Tate, London

Dover Harbour: A Ship Being Overhauled
Tate, London

A Boat on the Shore, near Shakespeare Cliff, Dover
Tate, London

Dover Harbour: Fishing Vessels, Their Sails Drying
Tate, London

Shipping in Dover Harbour, with the Castle Beyond
Tate, London

A Lake View, Possibly Ullswater
Private Collection

A General View of Dover Harbour, from the East
Tate, London

Dover Harbour: Small Boats by the Quay
Tate, London

Boats in Dover Harbour
British Museum, London

A Ship under Repair in Dover Harbour
National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin

Figures on a Fishing Vessel in Dover Harbour
Private Collection

A Fishing Vessel with Hastings Beyond
Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery

Dover Castle from the Sea
Private Collection

A Beached Vessel in the Inner Harbour at Dover
Private Collection

Dover Harbour, with the Castle on the Hill
British Museum, London

Dover Harbour
Private Collection

Beached Vessels in Dover Harbour, the Castle in the Distance
Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton

Vessels Anchored in Dover Harbour, with the Castle Beyond
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh

Warehouses with Shipping in Dover Harbour
Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton

Vessels in the Harbour at Dover, with the Castle Beyond
Private Collection

Dover Harbour, with the Cliffs Beyond
Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart

Vessels Moored in Dover Harbour
Private Collection

The Inner Harbour, Dover, with the Castle Beyond
Brighton Museum and Art Gallery

A Ship Drawn Up on a Beach Being Careened
Private Collection

Beached Fishing Vessels, Dover Harbour
National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin

Beached Fishing Vessels in the Harbour at Dover
Private Collection

Boats Anchored in Dover Harbour
Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Boats Anchored in Dover Harbour
Private Collection

Dover Harbour, with Fishing Boats at Low Tide
The High Museum of Art, Atlanta

Dover: The Harbour with Vessels
Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge

A Smack in Dover Harbour, Drying Sails, with the Old Church in the Distance
National Maritime Museum, Greenwich

Dover Harbour: A Boat under Repair
Private Collection

Fishing Boats at Low Tide, near Dover
Courtauld Gallery, London

Dover: Two Boatmen Standing by the Prow of a Brig
Private Collection

Dover Harbour
Private Collection

A Fisherman's Cottage, Said to Be at Dover
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

The Hull of a Ship under Repair, with a Barge and Smaller Boats
Tate, London

A Boat-Builder’s Yard, Possibly on the River Medway
Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge

A Boat-Builder’s Yard, Possibly on the Medway
Private Collection

A Boat-Builder’s Yard, Possibly on the River Medway
Private Collection

A Boat-Builder's Shed, Possibly on the River Medway
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh

A Boat-Builder’s Shed, Possibly on the River Medway, with a Fishing Boat with Drying Sails
Tate, London

The Coast, near Dover
The Higgins, Bedford

Folkestone Harbour
Julian Huxley-Parlour Fine Art, London

Beachy Head, Looking towards Newhaven
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh

Beachy Head, Looking towards Newhaven
Ulster Museum, Belfast

Shakespeare Cliff, Dover
National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin

Beached Vessels in Dover Harbour, the Castle in the Distance
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

Buildings on a Wooden Quayside
Private Collection

A Coast View with Chalk Cliffs, Probably from near Beachy Head
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

A Small Boat under Repair by a Jetty
Private Collection

Dover: Snargate Street, Looking West
Private Collection

Dartford High Street
Private Collection

Tonbridge Bridge and Castle
Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge

Rye, from the River Tillingham
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh

Dover: Fishing Boats at Low Tide
Private Collection

Two Boatmen Caulking the Bows of a Beached Brig, Probably at Dover
Private Collection

Hastings: A Beached Fishing Boat
Private Collection

A Coastal Scene at Dover
Worthing Museum and Art Gallery

Mickleham Church
Tate, London

Dolbadarn Castle on Llyn Padarn
Clark Art Institute, Williamstown

Conwy Castle, from the East
Huddersfield Art Gallery

Harlech Castle, from the South
National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin

The Gatehouse, Harlech Castle, Seen from the Moat
Private Collection, Gloucestershire

The High Street at Egham
Private Collection

Boats in Dover Harbour
Leeds Art Gallery

Two Trees Overlooking a Meandering River
Private Collection

A Dilapidated Cottage
Private Collection

Dover: Boats Anchored in the Harbour
Private Collection

A Coastal View near Dover, probably at St Margaret's, Cliffe
Private Collection

Dover: Beached Boats, with the Castle Beyond
Private Collection

Dover Harbour: The Stern of a Large Ship, and Smaller Vessels
Tate, London

The Town of Rye, Seen from the Marshes
British Museum, London
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About this Work
This detailed outline drawing by Girtin of Snargate Street, at the foot of the cliffs in the port of Dover, was in all probability copied from an on-the-spot sketch made by the amateur artist John Henderson (1764–1843), and the artist is not known to have visited the south coast town himself. Henderson journeyed to the port in the autumn of 1794 and on his return lent the resulting ‘outlines’ to Dr Thomas Monro (1759–1833) so that they might be copied by Girtin and his contemporary Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851) (Farington, Diary, 30 December 1794). The ‘outlines of Shipping & Boats’ Henderson made in Dover, described by the diarist Joseph Farington (1747–1821) as ‘Very ingenious & careful’, provided the basis for as many as a hundred views of the port and its environs owned by Monro (Farington, Diary, 1 December 1795). As the artists themselves recalled, ‘Girtin drew in outlines and Turner washed in the effects’, with Turner receiving ‘3s. 6d each night’, though ‘Girtin did not say what He had’ (Farington, Diary, 12 November 1798). In addition to providing Turner with outlines to colour, Girtin made a number of pencil copies for his own use, including the highly detailed general view Dover Harbour (TG0802) and other smaller shipping scenes, a few of which, like Dover Castle, Seen from the Beach (TG0263), he added colour to. This drawing, I suggest, is another such copy, one that was improved and developed from its source with a finished studio composition presumably in mind.
This conclusion is completely at variance with the opinion of an earlier writer on the work, who believed that the ‘spontaneity and vibrancy of the present drawing’ is so much greater than the standard copies of Henderson’s drawings that it must have been ‘done on the spot’, the result of a special trip to Dover (Exhibitions: Lowell Libson, 2004, p.40). Comparing this drawing with another copy from a Henderson outline of a street scene, Dartford High Street (TG0843), as well as the view Dover Harbour suggests otherwise, highlighting, in the process, Girtin’s skill as a diligent and accurate copyist, as well as the dangers of applying contemporary ideas of creativity to late eighteenth-century artistic practice. The latter copy is perhaps the most surprising and instructive, illustrating as it does the sheer quantity of factual detail that the amateur was capable of capturing in his outlines, but also Girtin’s willingness to invest his time in producing a close replica. The view of Dartford, in contrast, though it includes a similar level of detail, also introduces a number of figures that are not present in the original Henderson drawing (see source image TG0843), and this is presumably what Girtin did in this view of Snargate too. The fact that the lively and inventive groups of figures in the Dartford view are then repeated in the watercolour that Girtin produced (TG0844) is what leads me to suspect that the view of Snargate is not simply a straightforward copy but also includes an element of invention with a studio watercolour in mind.
It is worth recalling that Girtin was probably engaged at this time, 1795–96, in the first versions of his major London view St Paul’s Cathedral, from St Martin’s-le-Grand (TG1396), which repeats the composition of the curving building-lined street shown here, with a comparable set of figures in the road and on the pavements. Copying Henderson’s drawings for Turner to add colour may have primarily been a tedious task made palatable by generous financial remuneration, but it also played a role in Girtin’s contribution to the development of new iconography for the depiction of modern urban life.
1795 - 1796
Dover Harbour
TG0802
1795 - 1796
Dover Castle, Seen from the Beach
TG0263
1795 - 1796
Dartford High Street
TG0843
1795 - 1796
Dartford High Street
TG0843
1795 - 1796
Dartford High Street
TG0844
1795 - 1796
St Paul’s Cathedral, from St Martin’s-le-Grand
TG1396