The Crater of Vesuvius

The Crater of Vesuvius
The Crater of Vesuvius
The Crater of Vesuvius
The Trustees of the British Museum
title=Credit line
Artist
Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782)
Title
The Crater of Vesuvius
Date
1754 (undated)
Medium
Black chalk and stump, touched with blue and white chalk, on rough blue-grey paper
Dimensions
Metric: 263 x 389 mm
Imperial: 10 3/8 x 15 5/16 in.
Accession Number
1881,0212.15
Wilson Online Reference
D248
Description
The crater of Vesuvius, near Naples, is shown with smoke billowing up from chasms in the hollow. In the foreground, on the brink, are two figures, with others partly visible on the slope below and behind.
Exhibited
Compton Verney, Warwickshire, Volcano, July - October 2010 (unnumbered)
Provenance
Donated by John Deffett Francis, 1881
Signature/inscription
Inscribed in pen lower right: Wilson
Verso inscriptions
[1] Wilson
[2] 97 [?]
[3] 13
All in different hands
Related Drawings
D249 Landscape with the Crater of Vesuvius, Royal Academy of Arts, London (03/1877)
D338 A Skirmish in Rowing-Boats in the Bay of Baiae (Private Collection)
Related Prints
E60/24 John Whessell after Wilson, Studies & Designs: Three Men with two Mules halting in a Field below a Volcano, The British Museum and other impressions
E60/35 John Whessell after Wilson, Studies & Designs: Vesuvius, The British Museum and other impressions
Related Works by Other Artists
John Downman, The Crater of Vesuvius, watercolour, 1774, Tate, London (T10174)
Critical commentary
Wilson visited Naples and the surrounding area in 1752, in 1753 or 1754 with Lord Dartmouth and again in 1756.
Bibliography
Binyon 6
Condition/Conservation
Good condition. Treated 27 May 2010