- Description
-
- Creator(s)
- Thomas Girtin (1775-1802) after (?) James Moore (1762-1799)
- Title
-
- Leiston Abbey
- Date
- 1795 - 1796
- Medium and Support
- Graphite and watercolour on card (laid paper)
- Dimensions
- 7.9 × 12.3 cm, 3 ⅛ × 4 ⅞ in
- Object Type
- Work after an Amateur Artist
- Subject Terms
- East Anglia: Norfolk and Suffolk; Monastic Ruins
-
- Collection
- Catalogue Number
- TG0327
- Description Source(s)
- Girtin Archive Photograph
Provenance
Squire Gallery, London, 1954
Place depicted
Other entries in Topography without Travel:
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A View in Windsor Great Park with Deer
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An Ancient House, Possibly in Sussex
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The Interior of Tintern Abbey, Looking towards the West Window from the Choir
The Interior of Tintern Abbey, Looking towards the West Window from the Choir
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The Ruins of Newark Priory Church
The Ruins of Newark Priory Church
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Lancaster Castle and Priory Church, Seen with the Old Bridge over the River Lune
Lancaster Castle and Priory Church, Seen with the Old Bridge over the River Lune
Private Collection
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Barnard Castle and Bridge, from the River Tees
Barnard Castle and Bridge, from the River Tees
Tate, London
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The Ruined West Front of Dunbrody Abbey Church, County Wexford, Ireland
The Ruined West Front of Dunbrody Abbey Church, County Wexford, Ireland
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin
The Refectory of Walsingham Priory
The Refectory of Walsingham Priory
British Museum, London
Thomas Girtin
The Ruined East End of Walsingham Priory Church
The Ruined East End of Walsingham Priory Church
Tate, London
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The West Tower of Rumburgh Priory Church
The West Tower of Rumburgh Priory Church
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, James Moore
Dumbarton Rock, from the North
Dumbarton Rock, from the North
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, James Moore
Part of the Ruins of Middleham Castle
Part of the Ruins of Middleham Castle
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, James Moore
Kidwelly Church, with the Castle Beyond
Kidwelly Church, with the Castle Beyond
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Thomas Hearne
Kelso Abbey, from the North West
Kelso Abbey, from the North West
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
The Keep, Portchester Castle, from the North East
The Keep, Portchester Castle, from the North East
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
The Keep of Rochester Castle, from the South East
The Keep of Rochester Castle, from the South East
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin
Part of the Ruins of Middleham Castle
Part of the Ruins of Middleham Castle
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
Margam Abbey Church, from the North West
Margam Abbey Church, from the North West
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, James Moore
The Ruined East End of Walsingham Priory Church
The Ruined East End of Walsingham Priory Church
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, James Moore
The Ruins of the Holy Ghost Chapel, Basingstoke
The Ruins of the Holy Ghost Chapel, Basingstoke
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin
The Medieval Kitchen, Stanton Harcourt
The Medieval Kitchen, Stanton Harcourt
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Thomas Hearne
Part of the Ruins of Lewes Castle, from the West
Part of the Ruins of Lewes Castle, from the West
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Thomas Hearne
Glasgow High Street, Looking towards the Cathedral
Glasgow High Street, Looking towards the Cathedral
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
The Keep of Hedingham Castle, from the East
The Keep of Hedingham Castle, from the East
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Paul Sandby
The South Transept, Much Wenlock Priory Church
The South Transept, Much Wenlock Priory Church
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, James Moore
Newport Castle, Monmouthshire
Newport Castle, Monmouthshire
Private Collection
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
Portchester Castle, from the Outer Bailey
Portchester Castle, from the Outer Bailey
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, James Moore
The Refectory of Walsingham Priory
The Refectory of Walsingham Priory
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, James Moore
An Unidentified Church close to a Road
An Unidentified Church close to a Road
British Museum, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
The Keep of Hedingham Castle, from the South West
The Keep of Hedingham Castle, from the South West
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin
Kirkstall Abbey, from the North West
Kirkstall Abbey, from the North West
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, James Moore
Kirkstall Abbey, from the North West
Kirkstall Abbey, from the North West
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, James Moore
The Ruined Gateway of Mettingham Castle
The Ruined Gateway of Mettingham Castle
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
The Keep of Rochester Castle, Seen from outside the Walls
The Keep of Rochester Castle, Seen from outside the Walls
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Samuel Ireland
Tintern Abbey, from the River Wye
Tintern Abbey, from the River Wye
Private Collection
Thomas Girtin, Samuel Ireland
Tintern Abbey: The View from the Nave
Tintern Abbey: The View from the Nave
Private Collection
Thomas Girtin, Samuel Ireland
The Market at Aberystwyth
The Market at Aberystwyth
Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
Lancaster Castle, from the River Lune
Lancaster Castle, from the River Lune
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin
Lancaster Castle, from the River Lune
Lancaster Castle, from the River Lune
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
Lancaster Priory Church, Seen with the Old Bridge over the River Lune
Lancaster Priory Church, Seen with the Old Bridge over the River Lune
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
Buttermere Bridge, from the Fish Inn
Buttermere Bridge, from the Fish Inn
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
The Medieval Kitchen, Stanton Harcourt
The Medieval Kitchen, Stanton Harcourt
Private Collection, Norfolk
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
Rochester Cathedral, from the North East, with the Castle Beyond
Rochester Cathedral, from the North East, with the Castle Beyond
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin
Glasgow High Street: Looking towards the Cathedral
Glasgow High Street: Looking towards the Cathedral
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
A Distant View of Corfe Castle
A Distant View of Corfe Castle
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
Chichester Cathedral, from the South West
Chichester Cathedral, from the South West
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, James Moore
The Gatehouse of Amberley Castle
The Gatehouse of Amberley Castle
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
A Lake and Mountains, Possibly in the Lake District
A Lake and Mountains, Possibly in the Lake District
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin
A Lake and Mountains, Possibly in the Lake District
A Lake and Mountains, Possibly in the Lake District
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
An Unidentified View across a Lake, or along a Coast
An Unidentified View across a Lake, or along a Coast
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
A Road by a Pond, with a Church in the Distance
A Road by a Pond, with a Church in the Distance
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin
A Road by a Pond, with a Church in the Distance
A Road by a Pond, with a Church in the Distance
British Museum, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
A Church Tower amongst Trees, with a Cart in the Foreground
A Church Tower amongst Trees, with a Cart in the Foreground
British Museum, London
Thomas Girtin, Edward Dayes
An Unidentified Landscape, with a Church amongst Trees
An Unidentified Landscape, with a Church amongst Trees
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin
Trees near a Lake or River, at Twilight
Trees near a Lake or River, at Twilight
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin
A Hilly Landscape, with a Two-Arched Bridge
A Hilly Landscape, with a Two-Arched Bridge
Private Collection
Thomas Girtin
A Distant View of Tynemouth Priory, from the Sea
A Distant View of Tynemouth Priory, from the Sea
Tate, London
Thomas Girtin
An Upland Landscape, Possibly in Northumberland
An Upland Landscape, Possibly in Northumberland
Private Collection
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A Bridge in the Lake District, Possibly Grange Bridge, Borrowdale
A Bridge in the Lake District, Possibly Grange Bridge, Borrowdale
Private Collection
Thomas Girtin
Bridgnorth, on the River Severn
Bridgnorth, on the River Severn
The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens, San Marino
Joseph Mallord William Turner
Knaresborough, from the River Nidd
Knaresborough, from the River Nidd
Private Collection
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About this Work
This watercolour showing Leiston Abbey in Suffolk is known only from a poor black and white photograph found in the Girtin Archive (12/X), where it is described as being in ‘Pencil and grey wash only’ and dated, rather implausibly, to 1790–91. The fact that the work is painted on card (possibly made from layers of laid paper) measuring 3 ⅛ × 4 ⅞ in (7.9 × 12.3 cm) suggests a later date and that it was produced for Girtin’s important early patron Dr Thomas Monro (1759–1833). Girtin painted a sizeable group of watercolours of mainly antiquarian subjects for Monro, including a view of Newport Castle, Monmouthshire, from the same unrecorded collection (TG0316), all of which were executed on a small scale on the same support. About twenty or so of these works were bought after Monro’s death by Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851), Girtin’s collaborator at this date, and they are now part of the Turner Bequest. But other examples, which typically show some of the nation’s less well-known medieval monuments, still regularly turn up at auction, where they are often misattributed because they do not conform to the standard type of work that Girtin produced for Monro in collaboration with Turner.
The majority of the small cards from the Monro collection were made after pencil drawings that Girtin copied from the sketches of either his first significant patron, the amateur artist and antiquarian James Moore (1762–99), or his master, Edward Dayes (1763–1804), and there is no question that he ever visited Leiston. Moore toured East Anglia in the summer of 1790 and two sketches that he made of Leiston, both dated 28 August, are in the collection of the Yale Center for British Art, New Haven (1975.3.598; 1975.3.599). Although close, neither drawing, nor the aquatint that was made from one of them for Moore’s publication Monastic Remains and Ancient Castles in England and Wales (Moore, 1792), quite shows the same view as here. Moreover, whilst it is possible that Girtin adapted Moore’s drawing to create a more picturesque view, his general practice was to copy the image faithfully and it therefore must be supposed that he worked from another untraced drawing by his patron.
1795 - 1796
Newport Castle, Monmouthshire
TG0316