Artwork
Catania and Mount Etna
Catania and Mount Etna is an oil painting by the British Romanticist artist Edward Lear. It dates from 1847 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The composition features the urban settlement in the midground, set against the backdrop of Mount Etna, a volcano depicted with a snow-capped peak.
Created in June 1847, this oil sketch captures the landscape of eastern Sicily, specifically the countryside surrounding the city of Catania. The composition features the urban settlement in the midground, set against the backdrop of Mount Etna, a volcano depicted with a snow-capped peak. The work serves as a direct visual record of Edward Lear's travels through the Italian peninsula, reflecting his fascination with the region's scenery and history.
Rather than functioning as an allegorical piece with complex symbolism, the painting represents a topographical study born from the artist's immediate experience; Lear produced the sketch just one day before physically ascending the volcanic cone with his companion, John Proby. It stands as one of dozens of works the artist generated to document his impressions of the island.
Technique & Style
Catania and Mount Etna is an oil sketch dating to 1847, executed in oil paint on a cardboard support, a technique typical of Lear’s quick, plein‑air studies. The work, classified as a landscape painting, measures roughly 31 × 48 cm and belongs to the Metropolitan Museum of Art collection. Lear’s handling is loose yet precise, employing layered brushwork to render the snow‑capped volcano against a hazy sky and to place the city of Catania in the midground.
Stylistically, the piece combines topographical accuracy with a romantic emphasis on light and atmospheric effect, reflecting the mid‑nineteenth‑century fascination with volcanic scenery.
History & Provenance
Created in the summer of 1847, Catania and Mount Etna is an oil sketch on board by the British artist Edward Lear. The work originated during Lear's extensive travels in Italy, specifically following his winter stay in Rome. On June 16, 1847, while visiting the countryside near Catania with his friend John Proby, Lear produced the initial sketch of the volcano and the city.
The following evening, the pair ascended the volcanic cone. The painting, measuring 31.1 by 48.3 centimeters, was executed in oil paint and depicts the snow-capped Mount Etna in the background with Catania in the midground. Currently, the artwork resides in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, where it is identified as a mid-19th-century landscape.
The oil sketch Catania and Mount Etna by Edward Lear is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Created in June 1847 during the artist's travels in Sicily, the work depicts the volcanic landscape near Catania. While the piece is confirmed to be part of the museum's holdings, the provided sources do not list a specific accession or inventory number, nor do they detail any past or current exhibition history for the work.
Overview
Edward Lear, a British artist and poet, created "Catania and Mount Etna" in the mid-19th century. This oil sketch on board captures a view of the Sicilian landscape, featuring the prominent volcano Mount Etna and the surrounding region near the city of Catania. The work exemplifies Lear's approach to landscape painting, often characterized by direct observation and a rapid execution.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Edward Lear (12 May 1812 – 29 January 1888) was an English artist, illustrator, musician, author and poet, who is known mostly for his literary nonsense in poetry and prose and especially his limericks, a form he popularised but which term…
