Lot 322: Herbert F. Denman (American, 1855-1903), Nymphs with Swans from Prothalamion by Edmund Spenser, alternate title Spring, Signed and date

Herbert F. Denman (American, 1855-1903)

Nymphs with Swans from Prothalamion by Edmund Spenser, alternate title Spring
Signed and dated "Herbert Denman/1895" l.r., titled on an unattributed label affixed
to the stretcher.
Oil on canvas, 26 x 36 in. (66.0 x 91.5 cm), framed.
Condition: Lined, paint losses with areas of flaking along the bottom and right edges, retouch, minor surface grime.

N.B. Prothalamion was published in 1596 in honor of the double marriage of the daughters of the Earl of Worcester, Elizabeth Somerset and Katherine Somerset. Spenser's poem included the following lines which inspired this composition: "There, in a meadow, by the river's side,/A flock of nymphs I chanced to espy,...With that, I saw two swans of goodly hue/Come softly swimming down along the Lee; Two fairer birds I yet did never see."