Two Irish old master paintings due to be sold in London this morning have instead been donated to the National Gallery of Ireland.
The pictures - one by George Barret, the other by a follower of Claude-Joseph Vernet - were to be included in an auction of Irish art being conducted by Christie's. Both in elaborately carved and gilded George II rococo frames, they were expected to fetch £150,000 (£200,000 sterling) and £30,000 (£50,000 sterling) respectively.
However, yesterday afternoon the auction house announced that the works had been withdrawn and would be going to the gallery under the terms of Section 1003 of the Taxes Consolidation Act of 1997. This provides for a credit against tax liabilities where the taxpayer donates certain heritage items to the national collections.
Neither Christie's nor the Revenue Commissioners would name the owner of the paintings. The auction catalogue stated simply that both pictures were formerly owned by Elizabeth Julia Morris, who died in 1968 and was the only child of Sir George Morris, a brother of the first Lord Killanin, and that they had then passed "by inheritance".
Last year, donations to the State under the terms of section 1003 of the 1997 Act were worth £2.6 million. The largest single donation is believed to have been made in November 1998, when the Bank of Ireland gave a marble statue of Amorino carved by Antonio Canova and valued at £520,000 to the National Gallery of Ireland. The two additions enhance the gallery's collection, which already includes 20 examples of George Barret's work and one painting definitely attributed to Vernet.
Born in Dublin, Barret was one of the most important 18thcentury landscape artists in Ireland, a protege of Edmund Burke, who encouraged the young painter to study from nature at picturesque spots such as the Powerscourt waterfall and the Dargle river.
The newly acquired work is an early picture, an imaginary Italianate landscape painted before the artist moved to London in 1762, where he enjoyed enormous popularity.
The French marine artist Claude-Joseph Vernet was also extremely successful and influential. His work was collected in this country by the first Earl of Milltown at Russborough, Co Kildare. Demand for his seascapes was so great that it led to many imitators, such as the artist responsible for the oil painting now donated to the National Gallery.