Lobster Pots- Selsea Bill

Object Details

• Artist

  James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903)

• Description

  Intaglio print of several lobster pots lying along the shore. At the left is a small boat. The words "Selsea Bill" and what appears to be a variation on Whistler's butterfly are etched on the plate on the lower right.

• Signatures

  Signature in pencil: the Butterfly.

• Edition/State

  1st

• Provenance

  To 1887

  M. Knoedler & Co., New York. [1]

  From 1887 to 1919

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from M. Knoedler & Co., New York in 1887. [2]

  From 1920

  Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer.

  [3]

  Notes:

  [1] See Bill of Sale dated November 11, 1887 in the Charles Lang Freer Papers, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. At the time of this sale, M. Knoedler & Co. was located in New York City, later the gallery opened branches in London and Paris. See also Curatorial Remark 5 in the object record.

  [2] See note 1.

  [3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery of Art.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Mr. Whistler's Galleries: Avant-garde in Victorian London, 1883 (November 20, 2003 to April 4, 2004)

• Previous custodian or owner

  M. Knoedler & Co. (C.L. Freer source)

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

• Origin

  United States

• Credit Line

  Gift of Charles Lang Freer

• Type

  Print

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1890s, 1870s

• Name

  Knoedler, Freer, Charles Lang

• Place

  United States

• Topic

  Charles Lang Freer collection, Landscapes, Art, Lobster, American Art, Etching (printing process)

• Culture

  Americans

• Object Type

  Prints