254

DUNCAN MCFARLANE

Massachusetts/United Kingdom, 1834-1871

Packet ship Sierra Nevada off Point Lynas.

Signed and dated lower left.
Provenance:
Descended through the family of the ship's captain, Pierce Wentworth Penhallow.
Hyland Granby Antiques, Hyannisport, Massachusetts.
Purchased from the above, October 2000.

Literature:
Flying The Colors
by Alan Granby and Janice Hyland (Mystic Seaport, 2009), p. 322, plate V.17.
When launched at Portsmouth, New Hampshire in 1854, the medium clipper Sierra Nevada was the largest ship built on the Piscataqua River. Her construction was supervised by Captain Pearce Wentworth Penhallow (1817-1885), who was her commander from 1854 until 1858. Sierra Nevada's maiden voyage was from Boston to Liverpool, March 16 to April 12, 1855. In 1856 she entered the California trade, making five passages to San Francisco between 1856 and 1862. In 1862, she was departing San Francisco Bay when she missed stays beating out through the Golden Gate and went ashore on Fort Point, but she was saved. In 1863 Sierra Nevada made her last voyage as an American ship, sailing from San Francisco to London. She was sold to MacKay & Baines' Black Ball Line, an example of the massive flight of American flag vessels to foreign ownership as a result of the activities of Confederate Commerce Raiders during the Civil War. She was wrecked in 1877 on the coast of Chile while on a voyage from Callao bound for Liverpool carrying guano.
This painting was commissioned from Duncan McFarlane for the ship's first commander, Captain Pearce Penhallow. It depicts the
Sierra Nevada as she appeared in 1855, with the ship's distinctive figurehead of an Indian warrior after she passed into British Registry. Approaching Liverpool and preparing to pick up her pilot off Point Lynas, this location was the focal point of the Mersey Pilot Service, whose vessels put out from Amlwich. Liverpool Pilot Schooner #3, The Duke, built by Buckley Jones in 1852, is off the ship's starboard bow with her punt trailing astern as she prepares to send over a pilot.

From the Kelton Collection of Marine Art & Artifacts.
Oil on canvas, relined, 24.5" x 36". Framed 34.75" x 47".
Condition: Overall excellent condition. The canvas is relined and under UV examination there is corresponding spot retouching, mostly to the sky, as a function of that relining. The work is ready to hang.

Please contact Eldred's 48 hours prior to the auction start time with condition report requests. Please do not bid on any item without reading the condition report. The absence of a condition report does NOT imply that an an object is free of defects or restoration. Please contact Eldred's before bidding with any questions as to condition. Condition reports are provided as a complimentary service and only reflect the opinion of Eldred's and should not be taken as a statement of fact. Condition reports only detail flaws or restorations and do not take into account wear, fading, or other issues consistent with an object's age.

Accepted Forms of Payment:

American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Money Order / Cashiers Check, Personal Check, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

We require prompt payment and removal of your purchases as stated in Paragraph 12 of the Conditions of Sale. If you plan to pick up your purchases, please call ahead and we'll make every effort to have your items ready. Our physical address is 1483 Route 6A, East Dennis, MA. Pick up of smaller items at our Mystic, CT location is also available with advance notice.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to provide shipping quotes until the invoice had been paid in full.
In house shipping is offered exclusively though UPS. All items are shipped with UPS insurance (max. $50,000). UPS insurance is billed at $2.70 for the first $100 and at $0.90 per hundred afterwards. Eldred's charges a minium $15 handling fee per package plus actual UPS shipping charges.
COLLECTION OF PURCHASES: Delivery or shipping arrangements must be made within seven (7) days from the close of the auction for all purchases. All items must be removed from Eldred's facilities within fourteen (14) days of the end of the auction. All items remaining after fourteen days may be subject to a $5/per item/per day storage fee. No items will be released unless storage fees are paid in full. Items remaining over thirty (30) days from the close of the auction may be sold for the buyer's account minus auction and storage fees.

August 13, 2020 10:00 AM EDT
East Dennis, MA, US

Eldred's

You agree to pay a buyer's premium of up to 25% and any applicable taxes and shipping.

View full terms and conditions

Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $49 $5
$50 $199 $10
$200 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $2,999 $100
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $29,999 $1,000
$30,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 + $10,000