Some of Ruskin's fine Alpine watercolours of 1844-49 are here, including the celebrated Mer de Glace, Chamonix, made with the aid of a dageurreotype photograph. Works by other artists include Burne-Jone's large cartoon of Chaucer in his study, and the spectacular watercolour of Coniston Old Man by Arthur Severn.

Library material includes some of Ruskin's fascinating manuscript diaries, rare books and fine bindings from his library, and books presented by him to a wide circle of friends. Many of his own books are annotated. From the holdings of correspondence in the Library are examples of letters by Robert and Elizabeth Browning, Thomas Carlyle and Edward Lear.

The Drawings shown in Part II of Treasures of the Ruskin Library include major examples of Ruskin's early work, alongside that of his mentor Samuel Prout, as well as pictures from the Ruskin collection such as the typical still life of Peach and Grapes by William Henry Hunt, bought by Ruskin's Father in 1858. Among the most celebrated of all Ruskin's later watercolours are Mountain Rock and Alpine Rose; Ca d'Oro, Venice; The Walls of Lucerne, and A Vineyard Walk, Lucca.

Samuel Prout: Old Street, Liseux, Normandy 1834	John Ruskin: Abbeville: Church of St Wulfrun from the river, 1868

Ruskin's two most important copies after the Old Masters are also in the collection: of Tintoretto's Adoration of the Magi, made in Venice in 1852, and of the figure of Zipporah from Botticeli's Trials of Moses, made in the Sistine Chapel in 1874. Both this and his finest architectural watercolour, The North-West Porch of St. Mark's, Venice are among the few works which Ruskin put on public exhibition.

Library material includes some of Ruskin's earliest - and now rarest - publications, such as privately printed Poems, (1850), and examples of other rare and unusual books, including items from the Kelmscottt, Doves and Essex House presses, as well as some forgeries executed by Thomas Wise in the 1890s. Unexpected treasures range from Lewis Carroll's copy of Praeterita to a corrected typescript by George Bernard Shaw.

The Walls of Lucerne, 1866 by John Ruskin

Catalogues are available for many of our exhibitions - see our Publications List for details.

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