Summer Evening on the Musselburgh Links
by Charles Lees (1 of 6 Original Photogravures)

First painted in oil in 1859, Summer Evening on the Musselburgh Links was the second of only two master works by Charles Lees with a golf subject (the other, The Golfers: A Grand Match, is the most famous golf painting the world). In 1913, the original painting was shipped to Germany from its then-home in Canada in order for a photogravure plate to be made to allow for its reproduction for the first time. The grand painting was shipped back to Canada from Germany just in time to avoid possible destruction in World War I. But with the world at War an ocean away, an unfortunate house fire in Canada took the grand masterpiece away from us forever.

But there did still exist those original circa 1913 photogravures, each of which were hand colored. Only a few strikes on the photogravure plates must've been made, as only 6 original photogravures are known to still exist. The photogravure plate was almost certainly destroyed in World War I, as it has not been seen since.

Some later commercial prints have been produced commemorating Summer Evening on the Musselburgh Links, but this is one of the 6 known original hand colored 1913 photogravures produced from the original oil painting. The original photogravure measures  14 1/2" x 25", and has been framed to 26" x 36 1/2".