Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones, Bt., A.R.A., R.W.S.

Christie's, 24 July 1984, lot 213;
Private collection

STRUCTURE The card is sound and the picture is in excellent condition with strong colours. There are no obvious condition problems and the picture is ready to hang. FRAME The picture is contained in a simple modern frame and under glass.
"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."

In 1880 Burne-Jones acquired a second house at Rottingdean, near Brighton, as a sanctuary away from London where he could enjoy a more carefree life. The artist converted one of the rooms that opened onto the garden at the rear into a tavern, which, due to its proximity to the sea, he called The Merry Mermaid. This was part of a marine fantasy world that Burne-Jones invented at Rottingdean where he painted a number of works on the theme of sea-nymphs, sirens and mermaids, culminating in one of his most remarkable paintings and his only Royal Academy exhibit The Depths of the Sea (the oil version is in a private collection whilst a watercolour is in the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard). Although he had shown an interest in the subject of mermaids in the 1870s it was whilst at Rottingdean that he indulged his imagination. The inscription on the reverse of this watercolour playfully suggests that the artist had witnessed this gathering of mer-folk playing in the waves.

In 1875 Burne-Jones had made a pencil drawing of a mermaid with two of her infants in her arms (Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge) a study that influenced the present picture, a small unfinished oil on panel of 1878 (private collection) and The Sea Nymph (Christie's, 14 June 2005, lot 34) in which the children are replaced with two writhing fish. Mermaids in the Deep was painted in the following year and is a version of a large oil painting (present whereabouts unknown) which can be seen on the easel in a photograph of Burne-Jones' London studio. In the same year he also painted another watercolour of a similar subject The Mermaid (Tate) depicting a young mermaid mother and her screaming mer-baby. There is a watercolour study for The Depths of the Sea (Ashmolean Museum, Oxford) which is very similar in style and execution to the present picture. A drawing for the mermaid in Mermaids from the Deep is in the Cecil French Collection (Hammersmith and Fulham Libraries).