Untitled (Ruins),Thomas Moran

Thomas Moran
(American, 1837-1926)
Untitled (Ruins)

watercolor on paper
signed T. Moran (lower right); inscribed (verso)

10 x 14 inches.
This lot is located in Chicago.
Fine Art signed T. Moran (lower right); inscribed (verso)
Framed: 18 3/4 x 22 3/4 inches.
Minor deposits of surface dirt and dust; sheet is attached to backing board with three pieces of tape along the upper edge; uneven toning around the image perimeter, with heavier toning to verso of sheet; mat remnants from a previous framing scattered along the margins; one soft handling crease in the upper left corner, only visible under raking light; two very small pieces of tape along upper verso edge; one piece of black tape along right verso edge. Under UV light: no apparent inpainting is visible. Additional images available upon request.

In 1856, Thomas Moran finished Among the Ruins He Lingered (location unknown), a painting based on Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem entitled Alastor, about a melancholy quest of a poet. Inscribed on the reverse of the present watercolor are lines from the poem, "Among the ruined temples there/He lingered...poring on memorials/Of the world's youth." Also written on the reverse of this artwork is "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage," which refers to Moran's 1859 painting, Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came (Madden Museum of Art, Denver), which itself was inspired by Robert Browning's poem by the same name. Although it is unknown who wrote these lines on Untitled (Ruins), it is clear that the composition, with its small, lone figure that gazes out at the vast landscape full of architectural remains, was inspired by the Romantic and Sublime movements of the 19th century. Though small in size, the watercolor showcases the powerful talent and strong imagination of Moran, as well as his interest in contemporary literature, an inspiration he would return to throughout his career.