Four rabbits in the snow
Watercolour
ca. 1890s (made)
ca. 1890s (made)
| Artist/Maker |
Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) is one of the world's best-loved children's authors and illustrators. She wrote the majority of the twenty-three Original Peter Rabbit Books between 1901 and 1913. The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Frederick Warne, 1902) is her most famous and best-loved tale.
In 1890 Beatrix Potter and her brother, Bertram, hoped to buy a printing machine. Bertram suggested that Beatrix sell her imaginary drawings to raise funds. The printer Hildesheimer & Faulkner purchased six designs from Beatrix and printed them as Christmas and New Year cards. Potter made numerous other imaginary drawings in the 1890s but this design has something in common with the Hildesheimer & Faulkner designs in terms of subject matter – a number of the cards feature rabbits in snow - and may also have been intended for publication. The humour and accurate depictions of animal anatomy seen in Potter’s imaginary watercolours of the 1890s anticipate her later book illustrations.
In 1890 Beatrix Potter and her brother, Bertram, hoped to buy a printing machine. Bertram suggested that Beatrix sell her imaginary drawings to raise funds. The printer Hildesheimer & Faulkner purchased six designs from Beatrix and printed them as Christmas and New Year cards. Potter made numerous other imaginary drawings in the 1890s but this design has something in common with the Hildesheimer & Faulkner designs in terms of subject matter – a number of the cards feature rabbits in snow - and may also have been intended for publication. The humour and accurate depictions of animal anatomy seen in Potter’s imaginary watercolours of the 1890s anticipate her later book illustrations.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Four rabbits in the snow |
| Materials and techniques | watercolour on paper |
| Brief description | Watercolour drawing with four rabbits in the snow, one pulling a sledge, by Beatrix Potter, ca. 1890s; Linder Bequest cat. no. LB.1008. |
| Physical description | Watercolour showing four rabbits within a snowy landscape. Three rabbits are on the right, with a rabbit in a blue jacket carrying faggots on his back and a rabbit in a green jacket pushing a log with a third rabbit. On the left a rabbit in a red jacket walks towards the others, pulling a sledge. Indications of the corners of the intended design have been added to the edges of the composition. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Production type | Unique |
| Marks and inscriptions | 'H.B.P.' (Inscribed by the artist, lower right. ) |
| Credit line | Linder Bequest [plus object number; written on labels on the same line as the object number] |
| Object history | Drawn by Beatrix Potter, probably in the early 1890s. Acquired by the V&A from Leslie Linder (1904-1973) in 1973 as part of the Linder Bequest, a collection of ca. 2150 watercolours, drawings, literary manuscripts, correspondence, books, photographs, and other memorabilia associated with Beatrix Potter and her family. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) is one of the world's best-loved children's authors and illustrators. She wrote the majority of the twenty-three Original Peter Rabbit Books between 1901 and 1913. The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Frederick Warne, 1902) is her most famous and best-loved tale. In 1890 Beatrix Potter and her brother, Bertram, hoped to buy a printing machine. Bertram suggested that Beatrix sell her imaginary drawings to raise funds. The printer Hildesheimer & Faulkner purchased six designs from Beatrix and printed them as Christmas and New Year cards. Potter made numerous other imaginary drawings in the 1890s but this design has something in common with the Hildesheimer & Faulkner designs in terms of subject matter – a number of the cards feature rabbits in snow - and may also have been intended for publication. The humour and accurate depictions of animal anatomy seen in Potter’s imaginary watercolours of the 1890s anticipate her later book illustrations. |
| Bibliographic reference | Hobbs, Anne Stevenson, and Joyce Irene Whalley, eds. Beatrix Potter: the V & A collection : the Leslie Linder bequest of Beatrix Potter material : watercolours, drawings, manuscripts, books, photographs and memorabilia. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1985.
p.112; no.1008
Hobbs, Anne Stevenson, and Joyce Irene Whalley, eds. Beatrix Potter: the V & A collection: the Leslie Linder bequest of Beatrix Potter material: watercolours, drawings, manuscripts, books, photographs and memorabilia. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1985. p.112; no.1008 |
| Other number | LB.1008 - Linder Bequest catalogue no. |
| Collection | |
| Library number | BP.1476 |
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| Record created | July 29, 2016 |
| Record URL |
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