Pair of Royal Navy Sailor’s Woolworks by the Same Hand With Trapunto Sails

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Pair of Royal Navy Sailor’s Woolworks by the Same Hand with Trapunto Sails
Circa 1870

This magnificent pair of British … Read more Pair of Royal Navy Sailor’s Woolworks by the Same Hand with Trapunto Sails
Circa 1870

This magnificent pair of British sailor’s woolworks depicts two Royal Navy ships of the line under full sail, and it is clear that both were worked by the same anonymous sailor. His signature style unifies the pair: slate-gray clouds floating in matching pale skies, the same olive-green wool on the coastal promontories, and sails outlined throughout in the same vibrant red trim. In both pictures the sails are worked in trapunto, padded from behind to swell with three-dimensional volume against the delicate black threadwork of the rigging, and each vessel flies the White Ensign of the Royal Navy at the stern.

The first woolwork depicts a two-decked ship of the line in port side view entering an estuary, tiny cannon poking from her gunports, passing a green promontory crowned by a tall circular fort flying the Union Jack, while in the foreground a small white boat with three figures rides the calm, horizontally stitched sea. The second shows her companion, likewise in port side view, a three-masted ship of the line with a black hull, white gun streak, and gunports, a long pennant streaming from the main, sailing off a green headland topped by a small coastal tower, possibly a lighthouse or watch tower. Both are housed in matching antique bird’s-eye maple frames with gilt inner slips.

Hung side by side or flanking a doorway or chimneypiece, the pair suits a library, study, or hallway, where the matching maple frames and shared palette allow the two pictures to read as a single composition. They sit as comfortably in a coastal house as in a traditional or tailored contemporary interior.

Dimensions (each, framed):
Width: 21½ inches (54.6 cm)
Height: 16 inches (40.6 cm)

Provenance:
Earle D. Vandekar of Knightsbridge

Condition:
Good condition; the pair displays beautifully, the wools remaining vibrant. Glazed with museum UV conservation glass to protect against fading.

Historical Context
The making of woolwork pictures was a favored pastime among British seamen of the nineteenth century, worked at sea, ashore, and in retirement as portraits of the ships in which they served. By the middle and later decades of the century the most skilled makers had begun incorporating trapunto techniques, padding extra wool beneath the stitches of the sails to create a billowing three-dimensional effect that catches the light and gives the flat canvas a true sense of wind and movement.

The flags are important to the reading: the White Ensign, the red cross of St George on a white field with the Union in the canton, marks both vessels as ships of the Royal Navy, the flag of the whole fleet after the squadron colors were consolidated in 1864, as distinct from the Red Ensign of the merchant service. The forts, headlands, and small boats, the latter often representing local pilot boats, add a narrative dimension that lifts these from simple ship portraits into maritime scenes. Pairs by a single identifiable hand, unified in palette and technique and preserved together, are of great rarity, and this pair, with its padded sails and red-trimmed canvas, has exceptional presence.

(Ref: NY11069/70-krrr) See less