"Sail and Steam on the Morning Tide"

Cunard Liner Pavonia Leaving Boston at Dawn 1890's

oil, 24” x 40,” framed dimensions: 30” x 46”

$45,000

By 1900 there were over a quarter of a million Irish immigrants living in the Boston, Massachusetts area. Many of those that entered Boston between 1880 and 1900 did so aboard ships of the Cunard Line. In this striking painting the type 'B' Cunard liner PAVONIA is being helped out of her East Boston slip at dawn, bound for a transatlantic passage. A transitional liner, she was propelled by both sail and steam. She and her sister ships CEPHALONIA and CATALONIA were built for the Liverpool - Queenstown - Boston run in the early 1880's and continued in service until replaced by newer liners in 1900. PAVONIA was always a favorite. She and her sisters each accommodated 200 cabin passengers and 1,500 steerage.  A large number of the Irish immigrants entering Boston in the 1880s and 90s did so, on the Cunarders.

At the same time we see a purely sail powered fishing schooner departing for weeks of hard work offshore. This painting reflects the moment in history when new technology has begin to replace the old (sound familiar?) and highlights the contrast between the crystal and silver of the Cunard cabin passenger and the life of a fisherman. Imagine the conversation aboard the schooner as she slips quietly away from T-wharf bound out for the banks and the harsh work there, compared to the bustle and fanfare that herald the arrival or departure of the luxurious Cunard liner.