Lot 65: Attributed to Sir Edwin Landseer, R.A. (1802-1873)

A sleeping dog oil on canvas 101/2 x 121/2 in. (26.8 x 31.9 cm.) PROVENANCE with P. & D. Conalghi & Co., Ltd., London. Possibly the artist's studio sale; Christie's, 8-15 May 1874, lot 207 as 'Dog lying down'. EXHIBITION Philadelphia, Philadelphia Museum of Art, lent by Mrs John Wintersteen, 1963. NOTES The present picture appears to be a very early work by the artist, painted circa 1818 when Landseer was only 15 or 16 years old. As a boy, Landseer was fond of drawing animals and entered the Royal Academy Schools at the age of 14. Encouraged by Benjamin Robert Haydon (1786-1846), Landseer studied dissection and anatomy to perfect his knowledge of animals. Mrs Bunny Wintersteen was the sister of Sir Henry McIlhenny of Philadelphia, who had a large house and estate in Ireland which he filled with works by Landseer.