John White Abbott Horse-Drawn Cart in a Devon Landscape

An original 1844 watercolour painting, John White Abbott, Horse-Drawn Cart in a Devon Landscape.

A fine late work by John White Abbott (1763–1851), drawn by the artist at the age of eighty.

Almost all of Abbott's work depicts topographical scenery in his native Exeter region. A practising apothecary and surgeon by profession, in 1825 he inherited Fordland, a Devon estate, from his uncle James White, an Exeter barrister and non-conformist, who was a close friend of Francis Towne. From this time on he lived the life of a country gentleman and devoted himself to drawing. It is very likely that the present work depicts a landscape in the local Exeter area.

Ink and brown wash on laid paper with shield and cross watermark.

Provenance: Sotheby’s sale 21 March 2002.