Two 18th century George Stubbs paintings, featuring a
kangaroo and a dingo, are to stay in Britain after an appeal backed by David
Attenborough.
A £1.5m
donation from shipping magnate Eyal Ofer has enabled the National Maritime
Museum to buy the paintings.
Commissioned
after Captain James Cook's first Endeavour voyage, they were put under an
export bar in January after being sold to a buyer outside the UK.
They are the
first known depictions of the Australian animals in Western art.
Kongouro from
New Holland and Portrait of a Large Dog were first exhibited together in London
in 1773 and have remained in the UK ever since.
Stubbs used
sketches and specimens to create the paintings in the UK.
Both paintings
were privately owned until they were sold in late 2012, when they were put
under an export bar because of their place in British history and artistic
culture.
Attenborough,
who backed the nationwide Save Our Stubbs appeal, said it was "exciting
news that these two pictures, so important in the history of zoological
discovery, are to remain where they were commissioned and painted".
A statement
from the National Maritime Museum said it was "delighted" with the
donation from the Eyal Ofer Family Foundation.
Named gallery
Contributions
from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Monument Trust, the Art Fund and the public
also helped the museum to purchase the paintings, which it says will
"greatly enhance" its permanent collection.
It already
holds collections relating to Cook's three great voyages and these paintings
will be central to a commemoration of the 250th anniversary of Cook's Endeavour
voyage in 2018.
The works will
initially go on display in the historic Queen's House, which is part of the
National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, in summer 2014. The gallery space will
be named The Eyal Ofer Gallery.
The shipping
magnate has supported numerous projects including the new building programme at
Tate Modern and the Royal Row Barge Gloriana for Her Majesty's the Queen's
Diamond Jubilee.
"My family
has a long connection with this great maritime institution and these paintings
are a landmark in Britain's history of maritime exploration and Captain Cook's
voyages," he said.
The export
licence deferral was placed on the pictures in January by Culture Minister Ed
Vaizey, who said it was "great news" that the "strange and
wonderful paintings will be available to be enjoyed by everyone for generations
to come".
Source: BBC
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