IMAGE
Wimperis, Jenny, 1838-1927 :[Biscuit Rock and Tunnel Beach, The Cliffs, St Clair, Dunedin]. 1881
- Date
- 1881
- By
- Wimperis, Ann Jane, 1844-1929; Petre, Cicely Beresford, 1900-1990; Petre, Anthony John, 1941-
- Reference
- B-189-004
- Description
Shows a view looking north along the sandstone cliffs just south of St Clair, Dunedin. The artist is painting on the sand at Tunnel Beach, at low tide. At the furthermost point of the cliffs are two natural arches formed in the rock
In the 1870s John Cargill, a local politician and brother of Edward Bowes Cargill who built Cargill's Castle, excavated a tunnel in the sandstone cliffs down to a secluded beach so that the Cargill families could bathe in privacy, away from the public swimming beach at St Clair. It was the strong rip there that is believed to have caused the death by drowning of John Cargill's youngest daughter (www.dunedinnz.com)
There is no solid evidence that one of Cargill's daughters drowned, either at Tunnel Beach or St Clair Beach. The story is generally accepted as local legend.
Inscriptions: Recto - bottom left - J Wimperis / 1881 [in brushpoint]; Backing board recto - top centre - "The Cliffs" "Biscuit Rock" + Tunnel Beach / St Clair Dunedin [in ink]; Backing board recto - centre - To Anthony Petre / Christchurch; Backing board recto - bottom centre - Cicely B Petre [in ink]
Quantity: 1 watercolour(s).
Physical Description: Watercolour and pencil on paper, 255 x 355 mm
Provenance: The inscriptions on the backing board suggest that Cicely Beresford Petre (née FitzHerbert) presented the painting to her nephew, Anthony John Petre, also the grandson of Francis William Petre and Margaret Cargill. Francis and Margaret were married in March 1881, which was the same year that this work (and possibly the painting of Cargill's Castle held at B-189-003) was painted.
- Access restrictions
- Partly restricted - Please use surrogate in place of original
- Format
- 1 watercolour(s), Works of art, Watercolours, Seascapes, Watercolour and pencil on paper, 255 x 355 mm, Orientation: Horizontal image
Click to request to view this item, access digital version (if available), and see more information.
Usage
Purchasing this Item
This item is available as a high resolution download. A request to buy an image can take up to 10 working days to approve. It will depend on copyright and how the image is going to be used.
If this item has multiple pages, or is several items attached to a single record, you can use this form to order your copy.
Using this Item
You can copy this item for personal use, share it, and post it on a blog or website. It cannot be used commercially without permission, please ask us for advice. If reproducing this item, please maintain the integrity of the image (i.e. don't crop, recolour or overprint it), and ensure the following credit accompanies it:
Wimperis, Ann Jane, 1844-1929. Wimperis, Jenny, 1838-1927 :[Biscuit Rock and Tunnel Beach, The Cliffs, St Clair, Dunedin]. 1881. Ref: B-189-004. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. /records/31986226More information can be found in our terms of use.