| Date: | undated |
| Medium: | oil on canvas |
| Size: | 50 x 30 in (127 x 76 cm) |
| Inscription: | between l/c and l/r "F. Schäfer", in the artist's characteristic block-letter hand. |
| Verso: | u/c "$ 485.00" in black brush. l/c "Ev. Mt. Shasta / from Cape Horn / Cala." in black brush in the artist's characteristic block-letter hand. The "Cala." is set off to the right and larger, as though it were added as an afterthought. Stapled to the upper stretcher bar is a letter fragment that may bear on the provenance (see Note). |
| Provenance: | In private collection, Burlingame, California, by 1971. "Private Collection, Nashville, Tennessee"; sold 9 May 2024 for $19,200 by Brunk Auctions, Asheville, North Carolina, as lot 659 in sale "An American Panorama". (See Note for potential further provenance information.) |
| Reproductions: | William K. Dick photo #143 (color, 1971); Archives of California Art photo (color); Brunk Auctions catalog photo (color, 2024) |
| Site: | Mount Shasta, California, as viewed from the South, with Shastina to the left. The profile of the mountain is taller and narrower than it should be, perhaps to fit into the tall, narrow canvas. |
| Description: | A horse and rider follow a dirt road along the edge of a cliff, about to disappear around a turn. In the distance, the snowcapped mountain stands against a greenish-blue sky with coral wisps of cloud. The setting sun colors the lower reaches of the mountain pink, and catches the top of a reddish brown ridge on the right as well as the bent-over top of a conifer silhouetted against the distant mountain on the left. At the left edge a rocky cliff descends in the middle distance rapidly down into the canyon. In the foreground left a dead tree stands on the hillside between two boulders; two fallen trees lie below it at the left side of the trail. A small patch of greenery is on the right side of the trail at the cliff's edge. On the right, the dark river valley below is sparsely covered with trees. (From a color photograph.) |
| Note: | Stapled to the upper stretcher bar at the time of the Brunk Auctions 2024 sale was a fragment of a letterhead of New Collectors Gallery, Inc., 1317 Grant Avenue, San Francisco, California 94133, with the typed words "Appraisal for Edward Schnabel, 8718 Seventh AVENUE, [Oakland?], California 94606", which may indicate that the provenance should include Mr. Schnabel and/or the New Collectors Gallery. |
| Identification: | Title from the artist's verso inscription with abbreviations expanded. The Archives of California Art photograph has the note "Rider on horseback" on its back. |
| In index(es): | Title list, Mount Shasta and Shastina, expensive paintings |
![[photo]](../smalls/p/img2016.jpg)