The Museum acquires two of the most revered paintings of the Victorian era
14 October 2004
Two of the most important and popular paintings of the mid-Victorian era have been acquired by the Museum of London for a total of nearly £839,000.
Painted by Henry Nelson O’Neil, Eastward Ho! (1858), and its companion piece, Home Again(1859), show soldiers boarding a ship bound for the Indian Mutiny of 1857-59 (otherwise known as the First Indian War of Independence) and returning to their families again over a year later.
The Mutiny came to be seen as one of the defining moments of British rule in India and the two paintings came to symbolise the effects on the ordinary people in Britain of the many wars being fought overseas in the name of the Empire. When they go on display on Friday 15 October, they will be the only pair in any public collection.
They have been bought with the help of generous grants from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), which awarded a grant of £713,000, and the National Art Collections Fund.
Both paintings are filled with significant details and finished in a smooth, highly polished style. Eastward Ho! shows soldiers bidding sad farewells to their families as they board a ship at Tilbury before setting sail for India down the Thames, symbolic gateway to the Empire.
Home Again depicts the return of the same troops to their waiting families. The emotions seen in the individual characters reflected the feelings of the nation as a whole, as reports of massacres and photographs of some of the realities of the war filtered back to England.
They did not glorify heroic deeds or battles of the past as was usual in ‘history painting’, but focused on the experiences of ordinary people, reflecting the growing interest among artists in depicting contemporary themes and ‘modern life’.
The paintings were an instant success with the public in the 1858 and 1859 Summer Exhibitions at the Royal Academy. Of Home Again, The Times wrote ‘It is evident, if one listens to the crowd round this picture, that it fulfils at least one function of a work of art - it goes home to the business and bosoms of average people in a healthy and humanising way.’
Over half a million people had seen them by 1860, when they went on display together in Piccadilly. Prints were produced and a wood engraving of Eastward Ho! was published in the Illustrated London News, the leading illustrated magazine of the period. So many prints were sold that the two paintings became iconic images of the Victorian period.
Prof. Jack Lohman, Director of the Museum of London states ‘The Museum of London is extremely grateful to the Heritage Lottery Fund and the National Art Collections Fund for enabling us to buy these important paintings. They are the most valuable acquisition the Museum has ever made.’
Sue Bowers, Regional Manager for HLF in London adds; ‘As well as being exceptional examples of O’Neil’s work, these paintings are important for the stories they tell about Victorian London, when the Thames held world status as the gateway to the heart of the Empire. We are thrilled to help unveil the paintings for the public so that everyone has the chance to enjoy them and learn about a fascinating period in London’s history.’
David Barrie, Director of the national Art Collections Fund, said: ‘O’Neil’s paintings, like the novels of Dickens, give a dramatic and moving insight into the concerns of ordinary people in mid-Victorian England – concerns, sadly, that are not so very different from our own in the early 21st century. We are delighted that, with our help, the Museum of London has been able to acquire these iconic works – they could not have found a better or more appropriate home.’
Editor's notes
Details of paintings:
Eastward Ho! 1858: Oil on canvas 91.4 x 72.4 cm
Home Again 1859: Oil on canvas 135 x 107cm
Versions: Because of their popularity, O’Neil painted three versions of each of the two paintings: a full size version, a two-third size version and a small version on panel.
The Museum of London has acquired the two-thirds size version of Eastward Ho! and the full-size version of Home Again.
Henry Nelson O’Neil (1817 – 1880) was a leading historical painter of the Victorian period. He was a member of the group called ‘The Clique’, which included artists such as Richard Dadd, Augustus Egg, John Phillip and William Powell Frith. He was also a long time friend of John Everett Millais.
His friend Anthony Trollope, writing O’Neil’s obituary in the Times of 15 March 1880, wrote of Eastward Ho! and Home Again . ‘Those who look back over the 22 years and remember the crowds through which it was necessary to fight their way at the Royal Academy up to the standing point from which they could be seen will acknowledge that he had won his meed of fame in the battle of life which is just run.’
Further details and photographs from:
Marian Williams/Fay Ross-Magenty
tel: 020 7814 5502/5511