Attributed Reginald Arthur Borstel Oil Painting Ship Square Rigger Wiscombe Park c1910–1917
Reginald Arthur Borstel Attributed Wiscombe Park Marine Painting c.1910–1917
A compelling early 20th-century maritime painting of the historic British sailing ship Wiscombe Park, combining imposing decorative presence with an extensively researched connection to Australian marine painter Reginald Arthur Borstel (1875–1922).
Highlights
• Cautiously attributed to Reginald Arthur Borstel
• Circa 1910–1917
• Oil on canvas, unsigned
• Canvas approximately 59 × 90 cm
• Depicts the historic steel square rigger Wiscombe Park
• Approximately 281 ft long and 2,228 tons
• John Blumer & Co., Sunderland, yard no. 117
• Original G. Windram & Co. management connection
• Probable “GW&Co” house flag visible in the painting
• Documented Australian trading history
• Separate Borstel Wiscombe Park portrait recorded in 1917
• Later Larson-Juhl gilt frame
Introduction
This substantial oil-on-canvas ship portrait captures Wiscombe Park driving through a rolling sea beneath a broad expanse of sail, her tall three-masted rig filling the composition.
Fine documentary details distinguish the work: sailors are visible on deck, the ship's complex standing and running rigging is carefully described, distant sailing vessels occupy the horizon and WISCOMBE PARK is clearly legible upon the bow.
A prominent red house flag appears to carry reversed lettering consistent with “GW&Co”, providing a possible visual link to G. Windram & Co. of Liverpool. Research has additionally identified a separate Wiscombe Park portrait under Reginald Arthur Borstel's name dated 1917, leading to the present cautious attribution and circa 1910–1917 dating.
Catalogue Details
Artist / Attribution: Attributed to Reginald Arthur Borstel (Australian, 1875–1922)
Title: Portrait of the Three-Masted Square Rigger Wiscombe Park
Date: Circa 1910–1917
Medium: Oil on canvas
Signature: Unsigned
Genre: Maritime / ship portrait
Ship: Wiscombe Park
Construction: Steel
Rig: Three-masted full-rigged ship
Purpose: Ocean-going general cargo vessel
Builder: John Blumer & Co., Sunderland
Yard: No. 117
Launch: 4 November 1891
Completion: 1892
Original Owning Company: Ship “Wiscombe Park” Co. Ltd.
Management: G. Windram & Co., Liverpool
Registry: Liverpool
Official Number: 99361
Signal Letters: WLBP
Tonnage: Approximately 2,228 tons
Length: Approximately 281 ft
Breadth: Approximately 42.2 ft
Painted Flags: Red Ensign; Union Flag; probable G. Windram & Co. house flag
Canvas Size: Approximately 59 × 90 cm
Overall Framed Size: Approximately 74.5 × 105.5 × 1.5 cm
Frame: Later Larson-Juhl moulded gilt frame
Catalogue Note
When previously offered at auction, the painting was conservatively described as English School, early 20th century. Our subsequent research has considerably expanded the historical context surrounding both its subject and potential authorship.
A separately recorded Wiscombe Park by Reginald Arthur Borstel dates from 1917. Although distinctly different from the present painting, that work establishes the vessel itself as part of Borstel's documented maritime subject matter.
The apparent “GW&Co” house flag potentially provides another important clue. G. Windram & Co. managed Wiscombe Park during her earlier career, and the vessel changed ownership in 1911. The painting may therefore portray an earlier configuration of the ship even if the canvas itself was executed subsequently from photographic material.
For these reasons, and while recognising the absence of a signature or direct documentary commission, the present work is catalogued cautiously as attributed to Reginald Arthur Borstel, circa 1910–1917.
Why Wiscombe Park Matters
Measuring approximately 281 feet in length and around 2,228 tons, Wiscombe Park belonged to the great ocean-going merchant sailing fleet rather than the world of smaller coastal craft.
Her size makes the painting particularly impressive when understood in context: the ship represented was more than 85 metres long.
She was also unusual. Although large commercial sailing vessels increasingly adopted four-masted barque configurations, Wiscombe Park retained an imposing three-masted full-rigged arrangement.
The painting consequently records a distinctive survivor from the transitional period between the great age of commercial sail and the dominance of steam.
About Reginald Arthur Borstel
Reginald Arthur Borstel was born in Sydney in 1875 and became one of Australia's specialist painters of commercial sailing ships.
His maritime portraiture concentrated on identifiable vessels rather than imaginary marine subjects. Hull form, rig, flags, ship names and other documentary features play an important role in his surviving work.
Borstel's known maritime subjects include John Ena, Speedonia, Port Jackson, West Lothian and Wiscombe Park.
The connection between maritime painting and photography within his practice is particularly relevant when considering whether an artist might have represented an earlier appearance of a vessel from a photographic source.
Built for the Deep-Sea Trade
John Blumer & Co. constructed Wiscombe Park at Sunderland as yard no. 117.
Launched in November 1891 and completed in 1892, she was built in steel for long-distance cargo work and registered at Liverpool.
The original owning concern was Ship “Wiscombe Park” Co. Ltd., with G. Windram & Co. acting as managers.
A surviving historic photograph by F. C. Gould & Son records the actual vessel and provides an important visual reference for her distinctive hull and rig.
From Liverpool to Australia
Wiscombe Park's working life connected British shipping with international ports, including Australia.
Contemporary evidence documents Australian-bound activity during the 1910s, including an account associated with the vessel's mate Walter Chamberlin.
The ship is later documented in Australian waters during 1917 — the same year associated with the separately recorded Borstel portrait.
This does not prove authorship of the present painting, but it adds meaningful historical context to the proposed attribution.
The Flags as Historical Evidence
Flags are not merely decorative elements in a traditional ship portrait; they can provide evidence about nationality and commercial identity.
The painting depicts a Red Ensign and Union Flag, together with a conspicuous red house flag.
The latter appears to show “GW&Co” in reverse, consistent with the flag being viewed from its reverse side and potentially identifying G. Windram & Co.
If correct, this suggests that the artist represented Wiscombe Park in her earlier Windram-associated guise.
A Separate Borstel Portrait
A separate painting titled for Wiscombe Park is recorded under Borstel's name and dated 1917.
It is not the present painting.
The two compositions must therefore be treated as separate works, but the documented example is highly relevant because it demonstrates Borstel's specific artistic interest in this vessel.
Dating — Circa 1910–1917
The present canvas is cautiously placed within circa 1910–1917.
The apparent Windram house flag may point towards a pre-1911 appearance of the ship. Conversely, the painting could have been executed somewhat later from an earlier photograph.
The separate Borstel Wiscombe Park of 1917 establishes an important upper contextual reference without proving an exact 1917 execution date for the present work.
A Remarkable Later Career
After passing from British ownership, Wiscombe Park became Edouard Bureau under French ownership and later entered German service.
She was eventually adapted as a sail-training vessel, giving this already long-lived commercial sailing ship another distinct chapter in her career.
The Last Voyage from Australia
In 1927 the vessel sailed from Port Pirie in South Australia with a cargo of wheat bound for Europe.
After a difficult Cape Horn passage, she reached Falmouth before being ordered towards Belfast.
She grounded on Twin Rocks in the Irish Sea. Although salvaged from the rocks, the cost of repairing the ageing vessel was uneconomic and she was subsequently broken up.
An Artist's Ship
Wiscombe Park was sufficiently distinctive to attract the attention of another significant marine painter.
Herbert Barnard John Everett boarded her at Ipswich in 1921 and sketched aboard the ship.
Several Everett works relating directly to Wiscombe Park are preserved by Royal Museums Greenwich, creating a remarkable surviving artistic record of the vessel alongside the Borstel connection.
Research Status
The attribution remains under continuing research.
Areas of particular interest include definitive identification of the house flag, locating any surviving photograph corresponding closely with this composition and further investigation of the physical canvas.
The separate 1917 Borstel painting is a comparative source and should not be confused with the present work.
Provenance
Private collection, Northern England.
David Duggleby Auctioneers & Valuers, Scarborough, 16 January 2025, Lot 4020.
Subsequently acquired by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®.
Earlier provenance remains under investigation.
Dimensions
Framed: 74.5 × 105.5 × 1.5 cm
Canvas: Approximately 59 × 90 cm
Condition Report
The painting is offered in historic condition consistent with its age.
There is extensive craquelure together with surface wear, staining, abrasion and localised paint disturbance.
Historic canvas repairs and patches are visible verso, corresponding with repaired tears and areas of restoration and retouching.
Further localised paint loss, historic intervention and stretcher impressions are present.
The later Larson-Juhl gilt frame displays minor age and handling wear.
Please review the photographs carefully as part of the condition assessment.
Selected Research Sources
Royal Museums Greenwich / National Maritime Museum — historic Wiscombe Park photography, vessel history and Herbert Barnard John Everett material.
Design & Art Australia Online — Reginald Arthur Borstel biographical research.
Naval Historical Society of Australia — Borstel and Australian maritime painting.
Neville Pamment — “Reginald Arthur Henry Borstel (1875–1922): An Australian Pierhead Painter”, The Great Circle, 2018.
Daina Fletcher — research concerning Australian maritime art and photography.
NSW Shipping Master's Office / Mariners and Ships in Australian Waters.
Falkland Islands National Archives — historical shipping documentation.
Contemporary maritime press — Walter Chamberlin / Wiscombe Park material.
Historical 1917 Borstel Wiscombe Park record.
Christie's — documented Borstel West Lothian comparator.
Bonhams — documented Borstel John Ena and Port Jackson comparators.
Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales — Borstel, Speedonia, 1915.
Sunderland / John Blumer & Co. shipbuilding research.
David Duggleby Auctioneers & Valuers — previous catalogue record.
Research Note
The documented 1917 Borstel Wiscombe Park is a separate composition and is used as subject-specific comparative evidence rather than proof of authorship.
The proposed identification of the “GW&Co” house flag likewise represents an informed visual interpretation.
Accordingly, both the Borstel attribution and circa 1910–1917 date are presented as considered professional research opinions.
Shipping
Worldwide shipping is available.
Owing to the substantial dimensions and weight of the framed painting, it will be professionally packaged using appropriate protective materials and dispatched fully insured.
International buyers are welcome. Please contact us for a destination-specific delivery quotation or to discuss any particular shipping requirements.
Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution
The artwork will be supplied with a Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution issued by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®, recording the artwork’s catalogue details, attribution, provenance as stated, and details of the sale. This document accompanies the work as part of its ongoing ownership and provenance record.
Attribution and Research
The historical observations, provenance research, attribution analysis and contextual commentary presented within this catalogue entry represent the professional opinion of Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®. They are offered in good faith as informed scholarly assessments based upon the available evidence, comparative research, published reference material and our experience within the international fine art market.
These observations should be understood as professional opinions rather than definitive statements of fact or guarantees of authorship, attribution, date, origin, provenance or historical interpretation. As with all historic works of art, future documentary discoveries, technical examination, conservation analysis or advances in academic research may refine, expand or revise current interpretations.
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