Paintings by a Pugilist, on Sale at Robert McTear’s, St Mary’s Hall, Renfield Street, March 1866

 

Jem Ward (1800-84), circa 1825.

 

A short article on page five of The Glasgow Herald, on Wednesday the 7th of March, 1866, informs readers about an interesting sale:

 

“PAINTINGS BY A PUGILIST. – Mr. Robert McTear (of St. Mary’s Hall, Renfield Street) offers on view to-day, for sale to-morrow, a

collection of pictures, eleven of which are likely to attract somewhat special attention, not merely because they are clever works of art,

but from the circumstances that they are from the easel of Jem Ward, the ex-champion pugilist of England. Pugilists and painters are

not usually regarded as having anything in common, but in the case of the retired boxer of Holborn Hill we have the qualities of both

to some extent existing in harmonious combination. The pictures appear to have left Jem’s studio something like a dozen years ago,

and are, upon the whole, of a creditable description. They are chiefly sea pieces, and one of them especially, a moonlight scene,

exhibits clever management of light and shade.”

 

An advertisement for the view and sale of the paintings, along with other works of art, is on page eight of the same edition of the

Herald.