William Alfred Delamotte, 
British 1775-1863- 
View of Magdalen Tower, Oxford; 
pencil and...

William Alfred Delamotte, 
British 1775-1863- 

View of Magdalen Tower, Oxford; 

pencil and watercolour heightened with scratching out on paper, 52 x 37.6 cm. 

Provenance: 
The collection of Frederick Parker Morrell (c.1838–1908), Black Hall, Oxford;
Thence by descent to the present owner. 

Note: 
Delamotte studied under Benjamin West (1738-1820), and like West, enjoyed the patronage of King George III. He was a prolific draughtsman, producing extensive sketches and watercolours throughout Europe, in addition to the many executed in Oxford where he spent much of his life. A number of Delamotte's drawings were made into woodcuts by Orlando Jewitt (1799-1869). The present work depicts the tower of Magdalen College in Oxford, completed in 1505, which forms one of the most recognisable features of the city's skyline. 

Frederick Parker Morrell (c.1838–1908) formed the largest known collection of Turner of Oxford’s works which included pictures purchased by his mother in as early as 1818. Morrell matriculated at the University of Oxford from St John’s College in 1857, and in 1863 succeeded his father as Steward of St John’s College, a post he held until 1882. In 1867 Morrell married Harriette Wynter, the daughter of the President of St John’s and was also recorded as being in partnership as a solicitor with his father at 1 St Giles. He continued to hold a number of prominent positions in Oxford, and, in 1899, was elected Mayor of Oxford, the first graduate of the University of Oxford to hold this office. Morrell died in 1908, and his widow survived until 1925. Their son Philip was the husband of Ottoline Morrell.