James Lawson Stewart (British, 1841-1929) St. Albans market square, Hertfordshire Watercolor and gouache on paper 25-3/8 x 39-1/4 inches (64.5 x 99.7 cm) (sight) Signed in monogram lower right: JL Stewart PROVENANCE: Reverend E.S. Besant-Matthews, Dover, England; Dr. Patrick Besant-Matthews, Dallas, Texas, by descent from the above. Founded circa 860 by Wulsin, the sixth abbot of St. Albans Abbey, the St. Albans market remained a vibrant commercial space in the nineteenth century. While James Lawson Stewart captures a quiet day in the square (a table full of lettuces and other vegetables sits, perhaps left over from the busier market days), his keen eye for detail accurately records the town's architecture—notably the historic Clock Tower. Constructed between 1403 and 1412, consisting of five floors faced in flint, with a parapet featuring gargoyles on each angle, the Clock Tower is the only medieval town belfry remaining in England, its first of two bells named Gabriel. After a devastating fire in 1858, the Tower's planned demolition was prevented by the renowned architect Sir Gilbert Scott's restoration plan, completed in 1866. As seen in the present work, until around 1900, the Tower's ground floor was used as a shop, the shopkeeper living on the floor above. HID12401132022 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved www.HA.com/TexasAuctioneerLicenseNotice