John Smart, IV

The sheet is sound. On close inspection there is a tiny white mark to the foliage on the right of the middle distance. There are some very minor marks to the sheet towards the upper edge. Otherwise in good original condition, clean and ready to hang. Held in a simple wood frame with minor damage to one of the lower corners. Under glass, and unexamined out of 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 entitled Alton Links, Aberdeen, shows a view of the Links at the Royal Aberdeen Golf Club, which, unofficially formed in 1780, is one of the oldest golf clubs in the world. Until it was officially founded in 1815, this club was known as The Society of Golfers at Aberdeen with its membership being determined by ballot. Tracing the history of the sport is difficult but The Queens's Hole, which is considered to be the earliest mention of a golf hole in 1625, was at the Links of Aberdeen suggesting, although very little hard evidence exists, that the first game of golf akin to what we know today was played in Aberdeen. Although the Royal Aberdeen Golf Club transferred to a private course at Balgownie Links in 1886 due to the cricketers and footballers who were cutting up their course, many people identify with Links at Aberdeen as the spiritual home of golf.

John Smart was born in Leith on 1 June 1838 and as a young man gained his formative artistic training with Horatio McCulloch whose influence remained with him throughout his career. Smart was an extremely capable landscape painter whose works possess a striking freshness and truth to nature. David Webster considered Smart's work entitled Pass of Leny to be "a delightful piece of colouring, poetically rendered, and suggestive of the wilder grandeur of our Northern passes when robbed of their burden of summer beauty. He excelled in personal pictorial renderings of autumnal charm and in each his colouring was always exceedingly true, natural and appropriate." Smart had a particular interest in sporting subjects including shooting, angling and curling but golf was one of his favourites, primarily because it allowed him the opportunity to paint the landscapes in which the sport was being played. In 1893 Smart illustrated a book entitled A Round of the Links: Views of the Golf Greens of Scotland which was engraved by George Aikman.