Name/Title
The Celebrated Clipper Ship Thermopylae alongside the Main Wharf, June 1891, Victoria, B.C.Entry/Object ID
2001.02.16Description
Print
Artist's reproduction print (1993) after painting (date unknown) by John Stobart.
This print depicts the celebrated Aberdeen-built clipper ship Thermopylae with a cargo of rice from Saigon, arriving in the port of Victoria, B.C. on June 26, 1891. Victoria was home to the Thermopylae from 1891 to 1895. Built for the Aberdeen White Star Line and christened in 1868, Thermopylae in her heyday, was considered the fastest tea clipper in the world.
A clipper was a type of merchant sailing vessel, built for speed, with a sleek, narrow hull and limited cargo space. They represented the utmost evolution and refinement in the design of sailing ships. The name was adopted to mean a fast ship by the 1830s.Artwork Details
Medium
Reproduction print on paperSubject Place
Region
Pacific NorthwestContinent
North AmericaContext
In 1890, after more than twenty years as a China tea clipper and then an Australian wool clipper, the Thermopylae was sold by her Aberdeen owners to Robert Reford Co., a Montréal company, and registered in her home port of Victoria by Mount Royal Rice Mills. The ship then continued work in the rice and timber carrying trade between South East Asia and Vancouver, B.C.
The Thermopylae was named after the battle in 480 BC between a Greek city-state alliance led by King Leonidas of Sparta, and the invading Persian Empire army of Xerxes I. While the Greeks were unsuccessful, the battle is frequently cited as an example of the patriotism and courage exhibited by the Greek army defending its native soil, but also the performance advantages of proper training, equipment, etc.
Of note, there is a Thermopylae Club that was was formed in Victoria, B.C. in 1932 to preserve maritime history, and is still in operation today as a registered charity.Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
John Stobart (1929-2023)Role
PainterArtist
UnknownRole
PrintmakerDate made
1993Time Period
20th CenturyNotes
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Born in Leicester, England, John Stobart was a world-renowned maritime artist known for his paintings of historic scenes during the Golden Age of Sail, mid-19th century to the early 20th century. He showed a talent for painting at a young age, and developed a love of the sea and ships through his visits to his grandmother near Pier Head in Liverpool. Stobart was enrolled at the Derby School of Art in 1946. This led to a scholarship at the Royal Academy Schools in London. Stobart took a sabbatical from school and traveled to to Rhodesia to visit his father. During his time there, he completed many sketches of the numerous ports he had visited and he thought that shipping companies might well be interested in having paintings done of their ships. He later painted for British and Canadian shipping companies, first on speculation, then later on a commission basis.
Stobart emigrated to Canada in 1955, and while in Toronto, Stobart studied the history of clipper ships and other sailing vessels. Again Stobart saw new scope for his work and looked to further develop ideas for painting historic maritime scenes. In 1965 he made his first visit to the United States, later working on paintings for a New York Kennedy Galleries exhibition and emigrating to the U.S. in 1970. That show securely launched his career as a maritime painter in the U.S. He also saw opportunities to paint details of American ports ignored by most other artists. Stobart’s reputation as a maritime painter grew steadily during the 1970s and 1980s. He explored new historical subjects such as whaling ships and also began to paint the harbors of smaller port cities, and then the larger port cities along the great rivers and the Great Lakes, and returned to painting “en plein air”. With his original paintings becoming increasingly popular with private collectors, Stobart also began to publish prints of his work, and established five galleries over his lifetime. He was also a generous philanthropist, and in 1989 he established the Stobart Foundation, to encourage traditional artists through scholarships and educational opportunities.
In 1978, Stobart was a founding member and vice president of the American Society of Marine Arts (ASMA), and during his career he received numerous awards and honours for his contributions to art, such as his election to the National Academy of Design, N.Y., the Royal Society of Marine Artists Award of Excellence, and the Bermuda Order of Merit.Edition
Edition
Lower right in pencil: editionedEdition Size
850Edition Number
176Inscription/Signature/Marks
Type
Inscription, Date, SignatureLocation
Lower centre titled in print:
VICTORIA
The Celebrated Clipper Ship Thermopylae alongside Main Wharf. June 1891
Plus other identification detail for print left to right:
Occidental Hotel (Johnson & Wharf Sts), Customs House, Inner Harbour, Songhee Point, Parliament Buildings
Lower right signed : Stobart
Also in print: - STOBART ©1993
Verso frame, label:
Peninsula Gallery / 2506 Beacon Avenue /Sidney, B.C. V8L 1Y2
(250) 655-1722
PROFESSIONALLY FRAMED
BY XXXX Date 07/2002Dimensions
Dimension Description
Visible imageHeight
55.9 cmWidth
78.7 cmAcquisition
Acquisition Method
GiftDate
2002Notes
Legacy collection
Plaque: Donated to the Union Club of B.C. / J. Graham Fram [former UCBC Member] / June 1, 2002
