After Sir Edwin Henry Landseer, R.A.

W.B. Hopkins;
His sale, Sotheby's London, 21st December 1967, lot 125 (bt. for £90 by the present owner)

R. Ormond, Sir Edwin Landseer, 1981, p. 205, in footnote to illus. 150 

STRUCTURE The canvas has been lined. PAINT SURFACE The painting appears to be in very good condition. There are one or two extremely minor areas of retouching in the body of the lion and the painting has been cleaned and varnished. ULTRAVIOLET Examination under ultraviolet light reveals minor scattered retouching overall. FRAME Held in a carved and gilded wooden frame.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The present work is a version after a study painted in circa 1862 (Tate Gallery), whilst Landseer was working on the commission for the Trafalgar Square Lions. Evidence suggest that the artist spent much of that year making sketches of lions in London Zoo, in an attempt to better acquaint himself with the form and habits of the creature, and it is possible that the original was painted from life.

Landseer's association with lions dates back to 1815, when he borrowed drawings of a dissected beast from the artist Benjamin Robert Haydon, and he continued a series of lion subjects which punctuated his career, from early sketches taken in the menageries of London to the celebrated paintings of Van Amburgh and his animals exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1839 and 1847.