| Method | Mezzotint with etching |
| Artist | After Sir Joseph Noel Paton |
| Published | Edinburgh, Published by Hugh Paton & Sons, 15th August 1894, Copyright Registered. |
| Dimensions | Image 743 x 555 mm, Plate 820 x 653 mm, Sheet 912 x 742 mm |
| Notes |
As demonstrated by Dante Gabriel Rossetti's designs for the painting of the Oxford Union, the subject of Galahad was popular amongst the Pre-Raphaelites. Sir Joseph Noel Paton's How an Angel Rowed Galahad Across the Dern Mere was one of three paintings that the artist made depicting Sir Galahad's quest for the Holy Grail. They were intended as a triptych, but painted at differing times in the artist's career. The other twoworks are entitled Sir Galahad and his Angel, and Sir Galahad's Vision of the Sangrael. Paton was best known for his painting of fairies, and this familiarity may explain why the artist chooses to depict the supernatural elements of the Grail story. The siren-like appearance of the figures in the water serve to underline Paton's Christian interpretation of Sir Galahad's story. They could be seen to represent temptation, thus the Knight's journey across the Dern Mere becomes an allegory for the soul's journey through life. The Knight is guarded by an angel, and the soul, by God. It is medievalism at its most didactic as the Arthurian account becomes an adjunct for Biblical narrative. Sir Joseph Noel Paton (1821 - 1901) was a Scottish draughtsman, illustrator and painter. He was born in Wooer's Alley, Fife, to a family of weavers who worked with damask. However, Paton's future was to be painterly, and he enrolled at the Royal Academy in 1843. He was made an associate of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1847 and a fellow in 1850. Though his style was very much in keeping with Pre-Raphaelitism, his themes ranged from Dante, Keats and Coleridge, to historical allegories and modern depictions of the Crimean War. However, he is best remebered for his fairy painting, and his illustrations for Charles Kingsley's 'Water Babies,' 1863. Paton was created Her Majesty's Limner for Scotland in 1866, and was knighted the following year. Proof before letters. Signed in pencil with Printsellers Association blind stamp. India laid paper. |
| Framing | mounted |
| Price | £1,200.00 |
| Stock ID | 29944 |