Montague Dawson, F.R.S.A., R.S.M.A. (Chiswick 1895-1973 Midhurst)

One of Dawson's finest works, this painting provides an exceptional example of his unique and unfaltering ability to capture the movement and romance of the sea. The clipper ship, Gem of the Ocean, is seemingly overcome by the power and majesty of the ocean. The play of light on the vast expanse of rolling waves and the distant clipper barely visible in the trough of a wave in the distance beyond, demonstrates the extreme isolation of the great clipper ships as they ventured forth, speeding through the boundless ocean to their far off and exotic locations.

Gem of the Ocean was one of a long line of medium clippers built by Hayden & Cudworth at Medford, Massachusetts for William Lincoln of Boston. Launched at midnighton 4th August 1852 (on account of the tide) and built for the Californian Gold Rush, she was registered at 703 tons and measured 153 feet in length with a 33 foot beam. Although primarily used for cargo, Gem of the Ocean was beautifully formed and no expense was spared on her construction. It was reported that she was admirably adapted for the accommodation of passengers. Under the command of Captain Freeman Crosby, she left Boston on 15th September 1852 on her maiden voyage to San Francisco, arriving there on 2nd February 1853, 121 days later, a fast passage but not a record. Sold to McPherson & Witherbee of San Francisco in 1867, for the Pacific coast coal trade, she was wrecked off the west coast of Vancouver Island in August 1879 whilst bound from Seattle to San Francisco. All her officers and crew were saved but the ship herself was a total loss.