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The Fleet Off the Coast, Beachy Head
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
This watercolor depicts the breathtaking headlands of Beachy Head, the highest, most dramatic chalk sea cliffs in the United Kingdom. A marine painter active during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, Samuel Atkins patriotically associated Britain’s identity with its coastal geography and famous navy. A fleet of sailing vessels is seen in the distance in full sail, suggesting a rare moment of the entire fleet’s departure.
Cleveland Museum of Art’s own descriptionCredit lineThe Fleet Off the Coast, Beachy Head, c. 1790–1805. Samuel Atkins (British, 1760–1810). Watercolor with graphite underdrawing; sheet: 34.4 x 48.4 cm (13 9/16 x 19 1/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Lowell Libson in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Alfred M. Rankin Jr., 2011.411
