Famous painting is coming to Sunderland

Shauna Gregg, left, with Jo Cunningham, Exhibitions, Collections and Archives Manager at Sunderland Museum.

And so are lots more tributes to England’s most loved naval commanders thanks to a new exhibition which will be on Wearside in time for The Tall Ships Races.

Admiral Horatio Nelson and Newcastle-born Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood, heroes of the Napoleonic Wars, will be remembered at an exhibition at Sunderland Museum, Library and Winter Gardens.

Lemuel Francis Abbotts Nelson portrait, on loan from the National Portrait Gallery.

It runs between Saturday, June 2 and Sunday, July 22.

The exhibition, Naval Heroes: Nelson and Collingwood, will feature a famous portrait of Nelson by artist Lemuel Francis Abbott, painted in 1797, which is on loan from the National Portrait Gallery, London.

Other paintings on show will include After Trafalgar by Frank Mason (1907); A Naval Engagement by Richard Paton (18 th century); Admiral Lord Collingwood by James Lonsdale (1806), and a portrait of Lieutenant Granville Thompson, a Newcastle sailor who fought on Collingwood’s flagship Sovereign at the Battle of Trafalgar.

Other exhibits include a silver kettle which was presented to Collingwood by Newcastle Corporation after Trafalgar, and a letter written by Nelson on board his ship Victory in 1804.

A night telescope, reputed to have been used by Collingwood at Trafalgar and on loan from the Discovery Museum, Newcastle, will also be on show.

A Wearside connection will be a Sunderland creamware mug, produced at Dawson’s Pottery in the city in about 1800. The mug shows ‘Lord Nelson Engaging the Toulon Fleet of the Mouths of the Nile.’

Shauna Gregg, Exhibitions, Collections and Archives Officer at Sunderland Museum, said: “We’ve collated a fascinating collection of paintings, prints and artefacts about Nelson and Collingwood and it seems fitting to time the exhibition for the visit of the Tall Ships.

“We’re known for our maritime heritage and Nelson and Collingwood are rightly remembered for their vital roles in English maritime history.”

Sunderland City Council Portfolio Holder for Communities and Culture, Coun John Kelly said: “Staging the Naval Heroes exhibition in Sunderland is a great opportunity to celebrate our country’s rich maritime heritage, and our city hosting the Tall Ships which helps reminds us all of the magnificence of sailing ships.”

The exhibition is free and will be open between 10am and 4pm from Mondays to Saturdays and between noon and 4pm on Sundays.