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The Falls at Isola del Liri
Abbott and Holder Ltd
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Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782)
The Falls at Isola del Liri
c.1755 (undated)
Black chalk with traces of white on grey paper laid down
273 x 400 mm
10 3/4 x 15 3/4 in. in.
Location Unknown
D337
View showing a large waterfall and bridge with a rocky riverbed below. To the left is an irregular castello with a classical porch, and below are domestic buildings incorporating ancient ruins. Three figures are working on a boat in the foreground
London 1925 (81)
Benjamin Booth; Marianne, Lady Ford; by descent to Captain Richard Ford; Sotheby's, 24 November 1965; Bonham's Oxford, 13 June 2012 (133); with Abbot and Holder Ltd, 2012; present location unknown
Unsigned; no inscription
[1] Centre in faded black ink: Rich' Wilson' | a View at Tivoli | mounted for me by Paul Sandby. | BB/Nov.88
[2] Lower centre in faded black ink: Marianne Ford
The view is very probably of the Cascata Grande, Isola del Liri, near Frosinine, south-east of Rome, with the Castello Buoncompagni on the left, overlooking the falls.
Robert Adam, The Falls of Liri, Sora, Italy, about June 1756, contained in the album 'The Travel Drawings of Robert and James Adam', vol. 1/243, Sir John Soane's Museum, London
Despite the verso inscription, the falls do not resemble those at Tivoli. An alternative and more convincing location has been suggested as the falls of the river Liri at Isola del Liri, near Frosinone, Lazio.
Ford 1951, p. 33; WGC, p. 211, under pl. 98b
The drawing seems to have been much damaged, with parts missing from the corners and edges which were repaired by Paul Sandby, an early admirer of Wilson, prior to purchase by Benjamin Booth.
27/09/2017