About this artwork

Though Pryde lived in London from 1890, his paintings are nonetheless infused with memories of his native Edinburgh. The column on the left is similar to the Monument to Sir Henry Dundas in St Andrew Square. Pryde’s love of theatre comes to show in this dramatic interplay of darkness and light, architecture and nature. Tall columns and terrace looking out into the sea create a rectangular frame, whereas the dark clouds close like an arch over the small ship in the distance. The human figures, though shown in the foreground, are dwarfed by the scale of their surroundings.

Updated before 2020

  • artist:
  • title:
    An Ancient Harbour
  • date created:
    About 1923
  • materials:
    Oil on canvas
  • measurements:
    63.20 x 49.60 cm
  • object type:
  • credit line:
    Bequeathed by Lady Hutchison of Montrose 1941
  • accession number:
    GMA 38
  • gallery:
  • subject:
  • artwork photographed by:
    Antonia Reeve
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James Ferrier Pryde

James Ferrier Pryde