Benjamin Williams Leader, R.A.

W.H. Patterson, London;
Fine Art of Oakham;
Private collection

Frank Lewis, Benjamin Williams Leader R.A, 1831-1923, 1971, no. 27, illus. p.69, fig.3;
Ruth Wood, Benjamin Williams Leader RA 1831-1923 His Life and Paintings, 1998, illus. front end-papers

STRUCTURE The canvas has been relined. There is a faint area of craquelure in the centre of the sky, only visible upon close inspection. There are a few lines of discoloured infilling to the sky in the upper left corner. Otherwise the work appears in good overall condition, clean and ready to hang. ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT UV light reveals sweeping areas of retouching across the sky and flecked retouchings along the upper edge. There are areas of flecked retouchings around the chimneys of both the left and central cottages and a small area of retouching to the right of the furthest cottage. There are some flecked retouchings to the lady's dress in the foreground and two small areas of retouching in the hedgerow to her left. There is also a small spot of retouching in the lower right quadrant. There is an opaque varnish which may conceal old retouchings. FRAME Held in a gilt plaster frame. Please telephone the department on 0207 293 5718 if you have any questions about the present work.
"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 cottage homes of England!
By Thousands on her plains,
They are smiling o'er the silv'ry brooks,
And round the hamlet fanes.
Through glowing orchards forth they peep,
Each from its nook of leaves,
And fearless there the lowly sleep,
As the bird beneath their eaves.'
Poem by Felicia Hemans.

Leader's diary for 1862 contains scant information, with only three entries, dating from January and February. Therefore the exact location of The Cottage Homes of England is not known. However it is likely that it was painted in Worcestershire, like A Fisherman's Haunt completed in 1864 (collection of Lord Lloyd Webber). Leader's home at Whittington in Worcestershire was surrounded by fields of wheat and picturesque cottages like the ones depicted in the present picture. A picture entitled English Cottage Homes was exhibited at the Academy in 1873 but was slightly larger than the present work (36 by 54in.) and as it is unlikely that Leader would have exhibited a picture at the Academy nine years after it was painted, it seems that this picture was not the same as the present work. A smaller version of The Cottage Homes of England, with variant details was sold in these rooms, entitled Harvest Time and dated 1861 and 1904 (9 July 1974, p.160) implying that Leader reworked the picture many years after it was first painted.

The Cottage Homes of England is a celebration of the glory days of agriculture, shortly before the economic depression of the 1870s, partly caused by vast quantities of low-priced wheat from America which led to a decline in British agriculture. The painting is a rural idyll of golden wheat fields punctuated by red poppies and bindweed, divided by hedgerows and farm lanes where a farm girl flirts with a drover.