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The Shannon in dock

Photograph
1856 (photographed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Three-masted sailing ship at in harbour with a multi-point capstan in the forground. The sky is dominated by the rigging of this and other tall ships. Top right and left corners cut from image. Albuminised print with a sheen and ochre colour, clear dark image with a little fading at the edges.


Object details

Category
Object type
TitleThe Shannon in dock (generic title)
Materials and techniques
albuminised paper print from calotype negative
Brief description
19thC; Jones Calvert, Tall ship at the quay side
Physical description
Three-masted sailing ship at in harbour with a multi-point capstan in the forground. The sky is dominated by the rigging of this and other tall ships. Top right and left corners cut from image. Albuminised print with a sheen and ochre colour, clear dark image with a little fading at the edges.
Dimensions
  • Height: 20.6cm
  • Width: 16.4cm
Object history
During the 1830s William Henry Fox Talbot invented a way of making paper negatives and from them multiple paper prints. In doing so, he laid the foundations of modern photography. Calvert Richard Jones learned of these developments in 1839 through a neighbour, who was a cousin of Talbot. Jones made many pictures in the West of England and South Wales, where he lived. He also travelled widely, making photographs on the continent. Jones' work stands out in the early development of photography because he was one of the first to apply a schooled artist's eye to the medium.

Jones made many maritime photographs and often they reveal his interest in technological developments in shipping. This image is one of three views of the 'Shannon', a fifty-one gun screw frigate, a new fast war ship with steam as well as sail power. The dark and light pattern of her square gun ports is echoed by the square handle holes of the foreground capstan.This circular topped, multi-point capstan is positioned as a strong foreground element in the centre of this composition. Adjacent to it, a line of oblique wooden bollards leads obliquely towards the stern of the ship.
Historical context
The mid-nineteenth century was an important transitional period in shipping. Trading, communications and war drove the development of steam screw technology of fast boats, which still needed sails. Between November 1855 and September 1856, the Shannon was in No.1 basin at Portsmouth harbour for fitting out. In this photograph her funnel is not yet in place. (The earlier H.M.S. Shannon was famous for her capture of the U.S.S. Chesapeake in 1813, a dramatic sea battle in the British war with the United States.)
Subjects depicted
Place depicted
Associated object
Bibliographic reference
p. 161 The Origin of Photography: Great Britain. Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, 2019.
Collection
Accession number
PH.121-1983

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Record createdSeptember 18, 2007
Record URL
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