The Chaise Match Run on Newmarket Heath on Wednesday the 29th of August, 1750
Date:
1750
Materials & Techniques:
Oil on canvas
Dimensions:
42 × 66 inches (106.7 × 167.6 cm)
Credit Line:
Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B2014.5.25
Gallery Label:
James Seymour’s painting commemorates a celebrated chaise match that took place on August 29, 1750, between the Earl of March and the Earl of Eglinton, Count Taase, and Mr. Sprowle. Lord March wagered 1,000 guineas that he could run a four-wheeled carriage nineteen miles in less than an hour with four horses and one postilion. The match was run on Newmarket Heath before a large crowd. Lord March’s carriage completed the course in just fiftythree minutes and twenty-seven seconds. Although he has omitted the crowds, Seymour has otherwise rendered the scene with scrupulous accuracy down to the groom in red coat, who rode ahead to clear the course. Gallery label for A Decade of Gifts and Acquisitions (Yale Center for British Art, 2017-06-01 - 2017-08-13)
