original art: drawing. A study sketchd from out on the bowsprit of the armoured frigate 'Black Prince' (1861 looking back above the port bower anchor, with a boat boom extended out to port, two of the ship's boats in the water below and a small island beyond. The anchor is 'catted' ready for sea (though the ship is probably lying to its starboard anchor instead, since boat booms were only extended as shown when moored): that is, while no doubt hoisted by a steam winch and the main cable the arms have been fished and lashed alongside astern, and the head brought up and chained to the cathead by hand, part of the process being shown in a related drawing, PAE2656, but there probably relating to a starboard anchor. The muzzle of the 7-inch M.L.R. bow-chaser gun points through the embrasure by the anchor and an anti-torpedo-boat gun is mounted on the bulwark above. It is likely that the drawing dates from 1889 when Wyllie cruised on board HMS 'Black Prince' during naval manoeuvres in Lough Swilly on the north-west coast of County Donegal, Ireland. The resulting drawings were exhibited the same year at the Fine Art Society, London, in an exhibition called 'The Queen's Navy'. They were seen by a group of Royal Academicians, which, according to Mrs Wyllie, writing later, contributed to Wyllie being elected an Associate of the Royal Academy by large majority.

'Black Prince' was built by Napier's, Glasgow, and launched in 1861. It was the world's second ocean-going, iron-hulled, armoured warship, following its class sister, 'Warrior, but neither had long active careers owing to rapid advances in naval technology. 'Black Prince' served in the Channel Fleet and was hulked in 1896, becoming a harbour training ship in Queenstown, Ireland. It was renamed 'Emerald' in 1903 and then 'Impregnable III' in 1910 when assigned to the training establishment in Plymouth. It was sold for breaking up in March 1923. [PvdM/BT 11/18]