NO. 2 - FIRST-RATE SHIP OF THE LINE

According to his step-granddaughter Jessie, Alfred Wallis “was very fond of Horatio Nelson because he was born in Devonport, and he was all for the Navy.” She also recalled that Wallis kept a model of Nelson’s ship, HMS Victory.

It is very likely Wallis saw the real Victory during the years it was permanently moored in Portsmouth Harbour (1812–1922). Decommissioned and out of service, the ship was ‘in ordinary’: de-rigged, anchored with heavy chains, and used for various purposes, including as a prison ship.

Wallis inscribed his painting “The Old Victry” and depicts the vessel in exactly that inactive state, just as he would have seen it. It is a clear example of how strongly he painted from memory, drawing on the things he had witnessed and carried with him.