Cotmania. Vol. IV. 1929-30

Christie's 17.3.'30
J S Cotman
32 Fishing Boats in Yarmouth Roads
12 1/2 in. by 18 1/4 in.
watercolour. [[fetched]] bought in at 28 guineas.

Christie's 21.3.30
Cotman
152 Shipping in a breeze off the Coast
17 1/2 in. by 26 1/2 in.
oil horrible dud. was at Foster's a year or two back. has 'J S Cotman 1820' printed on frame.

Christie's
28.3.30
DRAWINGS
The property of the late John BOOKER of Boston, Lincs
In the Folio
J S Cotman
1 Carnarvon Castle; and An Etching by Sir Frank Short, RA., of a Swiss Mountain Scene, after J M W Turner, RA. -(two) 2
V[er]y Early W.C. of the Etching (J.J.) 32. V[er]y bad condition. 9 1/2 gs Macdonald + [?] resold to me for 13£.

Christie's 28.3.30
The following are the property of
MRS J BUTTERS
DRAWINGS
J S Cotman,
39 An Old Cottage, with a market-woman
7 1/2 in. by 10 1/2in.
very good. c.1809. -1.- '892 J S Cotman' much foxed -
19 gs. Thomson resold to Finburg (in the room) for 23£ - exh[ibite]d at Cotswold Gallery May '30.

Christie's 30.5.30
J S Cotman, 1823.
9 Mount St Catherine, Rouen: A view from the river, with boats and figures.
11 in. by 19 in.
From the Collection of J Davey, Esq.
Exhibited at Norwich, 1888 and 1902
From the Collection of J H Inglis Palgrave, Esq.
Reproduced in "The Studio" 1919
The property of the late Sir Jabez Edward Johnson-Ferguson. 360 gs. Walkers Galleries

{Newspaper clipping}
The sale of a Landseer painting at Christie's yesterday for 26 guineas was not nearly so remarkable at is (sic.) seems. The Taking a Buck is a poor work, badly composed and weak in drawing, but over and above this it measures at 6 feet 7 inches. There is no market for big pictures nowadays, however good they may be, except as "gallery pieces," for no private purchaser would have walls on which to hang them.
A small watercolour by Cotman on the other hand sold for 360 guineas, and a couple of flower paintings of the eighteenth century Dutch artist Van Huysum for 1,900 guineas and 600 guineas respectively.
From all this it may be gathered that the Landseer school of art has had its day, and that the wise [obscured] is the one who caters for the [obscured] and the maisonette.
The Northern Argus. 31.5.30

{Newspaper Clipping 2}
Three of the Johnson-Ferguson portraits by P A de Laszlo appear to have been bought by the family at 32, guineas, 95 guineas, and 105 guineas each. Other modern family portraits did not do so well. A very large picture by Sir E Landseer, "Taking A Buck: A Stag at Bay, with Gillie and Dogs," 69in. by 85in., exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1825, which fetched 1,950 guineas in 1888 and has passed through another two sales since then, yesterday was knocked down for 26 guineas. Better prices were scored for the drawings and old pictures. Of the former there were J G Cotman (sic.), Mount St Catherine, Rouen, 1823 - 360 guineas (Walker) ; Birket Foster, Young Anglers - 125 guineas (Ellis and Smith) ; J M W Turner, The Refectory, Kirkstall Abbey, 1800 - 135 guineas (Pearson); and F.
The Times 31.5.30.

{Newspaper Clipping 3}
In The Saleroom
More interesting than the fate of the Landseer and one or two other canvases of still greater area I found a visit to Christie's by Mr Walter Runicman, who is not seen there very often.
He stood for half an hour leaning against one of the walls and watching apparently with only tepid interest the bidding for a number of modern paintings, and then an art expert who had been chatting with him for some minutes went away to retrieve his hat and the two of them left the place together.
It looked at (sic.) though there might be a "deal" of some sort in the making.
The Northern Argus 31.5.30