Important South Africa and International Art

Live Auction, 23 May 2016

Day Sale

Sold for

ZAR 159 152
Lot 3
  • Thomas Baines; Climbing the Heights of the Drakensberg


Lot Estimate
ZAR 50 000 - 70 000
Selling Price
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
ZAR 159 152

About this Item

British 1820-1875
Climbing the Heights of the Drakensberg

signed and inscribed 'Climbing the Heights of the Drakensberg. Wednesday May 31st 1871. Painted by Candlelight - and should be seen by the same - as it looks coarse by day. Presented to Fr Van Zellen esq. by T Baines' in pencil

watercolour and pencil on paper
24,5 by 34cm excluding frame

Notes

'Saturday, 27th. Crossed Bushman's River Bridge and Little Bushman's River. Found Mr. Zeller, the Portuguese consul-general, who is going to the Transvaal to annul all the boundary treaties Senhor Barrahona de Costa has made.

1871. Sunday May 28th. Last night we outspanned on a small rise after a short trek, having been warned that tulp, a plant poisonous to cattle, grew near Blauwe Krantz, where we intended to outspan. Today we were occupied in trying to bring into something like comfortable order. I painted the Portuguese arms on Mr. Van Zeller's waggon and his name and title as Consul General. For this he gave me a sheep, and two more for copying my map for him...'

Taken from Wallis, J.P.R (ed.) (1946) The Northern Goldfields Diaries of Thomas Baines: Second Journey 1871-1872, London: Chatto & Windus. Page 601.

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