Adam's IRISH OLD MASTERS 5th November 2024

110 The wooden barque Juliet Erskine , alongside its sister ship Choice , is depicted in this representation flying a large ensign with a red circle set against a white square, bordered by green. While Choice is positioned off Cork Harbour, the exact location of the Juliet Erskine’s harbour remains unidentified. Both the Juliet Erskine and a distant paddle steamer display green, white, and red tricolours on their miz - zen masts, suggesting a possible connection to an Italian port, with Genoa being a plausible candidate. According to the 1858 New York Marine Register , the Juliet Erskine (signal number 714) was constructed in 1843 in Sunderland, England. Its registered home port was Cork, with the ownership attributed to ‘Darley and Foley’, though it is noted that this may be a typographical error for ‘Daley and Foley,’ as similarly recorded in Lloyd’s register of 1861. The vessel’s hull, measuring 297 tons, underwent metallisation in September 1853 and again in 1857. Subsequently, in 1859, the American Lloyd’s Register of American and Foreign Shipping listed J. Kelly as the captain of the Juliet Erskine . It is likely that this watercolour portrait of the ship was commissioned by the owner, Richard Foley. 75 RICHARD FOLEY (FL.1861) Juliet Erskine, 1857 Signed and dated Watercolour, 41 x 61cm Exhibited: Maritime Paintings of Cork, Craw - ford Municipal Art Gallery, Cork 2005 € 1,500 - 2,000