Cooke made numerous trips throughout Europe and North Africa. In 1860, in company with Robert Bateman, he undertook a journey around Spain towards Tangier. A new, more luminous quality began to pervade the colours in his work. The light of the Mediterranean can be seen even in his pencil sketches, which show clarity and the sense of exoticism that Spain awakened in European travellers.

After staying in Barcelona and Valencia, they continued on their route along the east coast of Spain, arriving in Cartagena, where they collected their mail at the Consul’s house, and where the sick Cooke was tended by a Dr Dailgarms. The doctor also introduced them to his family and found them lodgings and a studio where Cooke could work.

Santa Lucía, where this drawing was made, is situated to the south-east of the city of Cartagena, bordering its historic town centre, and 50 km south-east of the city of Murcia. In Roman times, the small fishing port of Santa Lucía was where the great Roman families had their houses. After this, however, the area was left largely uninhabited until the 19th century. Cook’s evening scene captures both the attractive natural beauty of the area and also its tranquil isolation, with only the ships at anchor in the distance indicating something of Cartagena’s busy prosperity.