A pair of White Pelicans
Watercolour
1899 (painted)
1899 (painted)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Howard Carter is now famous for being an Egyptologist who discovered several royal tombs in the Theban necropolis, including that of Tutankhamun in 1922. However, he began as an artist and was taught drawing by his father Samuel John Carter, an animal painter. Carter excavated in Egypt from 1892, first for the Egypt Exploration Fund, then for the Egyptian Antiquities Service until 1903 and from 1907 for Lord Carnarvon. In the early years he supplemented his income by painting and selling watercolours of birds.
Many visitors to Egypt drew or commented on the number and variety of its birds. Among them was Edward Lear, artist, traveller, nonsense writer, and, in his early career, ornithological draughtsman. One species - the Pelican inspired one of his most famous nonsense poems, The Pelican Chorus (1877):
We live on the Nile. The Nile we love.
By night we sleep on the cliffs above;
By day we fish, and at eve we stand
On long bare islands of yellow sand.
Many visitors to Egypt drew or commented on the number and variety of its birds. Among them was Edward Lear, artist, traveller, nonsense writer, and, in his early career, ornithological draughtsman. One species - the Pelican inspired one of his most famous nonsense poems, The Pelican Chorus (1877):
We live on the Nile. The Nile we love.
By night we sleep on the cliffs above;
By day we fish, and at eve we stand
On long bare islands of yellow sand.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Title | A pair of White Pelicans (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Watercolour heightened with white |
| Brief description | Watercolour, A pair of White Pelicans, 1899, by Howard Carter |
| Physical description | Watercolour drawing |
| Dimensions |
|
| Styles | |
| Marks and inscriptions | Signed and dated Howard Carter. 1899 |
| Credit line | Purchased with the assistance of the National Heritage Memorial Fund, Art Fund, Shell International and the Friends of the V&A |
| Object history | According to Rodney Searight: - `Bt Caroline Smyth (ex P[rue] Heathcote-Williams, Feby.1979, £93)' |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Place depicted | |
| Summary | Howard Carter is now famous for being an Egyptologist who discovered several royal tombs in the Theban necropolis, including that of Tutankhamun in 1922. However, he began as an artist and was taught drawing by his father Samuel John Carter, an animal painter. Carter excavated in Egypt from 1892, first for the Egypt Exploration Fund, then for the Egyptian Antiquities Service until 1903 and from 1907 for Lord Carnarvon. In the early years he supplemented his income by painting and selling watercolours of birds. Many visitors to Egypt drew or commented on the number and variety of its birds. Among them was Edward Lear, artist, traveller, nonsense writer, and, in his early career, ornithological draughtsman. One species - the Pelican inspired one of his most famous nonsense poems, The Pelican Chorus (1877): We live on the Nile. The Nile we love. By night we sleep on the cliffs above; By day we fish, and at eve we stand On long bare islands of yellow sand. |
| Bibliographic references |
|
| Collection | |
| Accession number | SD.211 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | December 22, 2007 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest
