Thomas Ketland

Sea Service Pistol by Ketland

Circa 1770

This period lithograph of the S.S. IMPERATOR includes its original period frame with plaque. There are a few nicks on the tin but the condition is overall excellent. SS IMPERATOR was a German ocean liner built for the Hamburg America Line. At the time of her completion in June 1913, she was the largest passenger ship in the world by gross tonnage, surpassing the new White Star liner OLYMPIC. IMPERATOR was the first of three successively larger Hamburg American liners that included SS Vaterland (later the United States Liner LEVIATHAN) and SS Bismarck (purchased and renamed MAJESTIC for the White Star Line transatlantic passenger service). IMPERATOR ran a transatlantic route for 14 months, until the outbreak of World War I, after which she remained in port in Hamburg. After the war, she was briefly commissioned into the United States Navy as USS IMPERATOR and employed as a troop transport, returning American troops from Europe. Following her service with the U.S. Navy, IMPERATOR was handed over to Britain's Cunard Line as part of war reparations, due to the loss of the RMS LUSITANIA...

This original watercolor on paper features traffic on the River Humber in the City of Hull. Hull or Kingston upon Hull, is a port city in East Yorkshire, England. The painting is hig...

An able sailor guides a fine sloop through the choppy waters of a busy American port in this work by Dutch-American artist Maurtiz DeHaas. Given the sailor's hat, what appears to be ...

This bright and serene scene of ships unloading off San Diego, California features a ship with a less than quiet history. The painting shows a typically bright and sunny Southern California day, the deep blue waters of San Diego providing the perfect backdrop for unloading crucial lumber for construction. The painting has Thimgan's eye for detail including the historic ship he's depicted, surely with a knowledge of her history, and his ability to so perfectly depict California's coastal landscape and surrounding waters. Some ships of legend get their reputations not for speed or daring rescues, but for the amount of chaos which happens onboard. Sailors, being generally a superstitious lot, could spread a ship's reputation like wildfire. As with the supposedly haunted places on land, the odd instances become larger tales whispered over strong drink in port or at worst, printed in bold newspaper headlines. The best crews don't want to serve aboard such vessels, so only the most hardened men sign on. Tempers flare and conditions deteriorate. Over time a ship gains the nickname of "hell ship" or "blood ship." This was the fate of the Bark HESPER. HESPER was purpose built in 1882 for the Pacific "Triangle Trade" - carrying lumber to Australia, coal to Hawaii and sugar to California, though she took on other cargoes in her career. The wooden bark of 603 tons was built by the Halls Brothers...

The modern Wall Sculpture " Shades of Gold ” is a unique metal Mural made from a burnout mold by David Marshall in 2021, sand cast in brass and steel in our foundry, handcrafted by ...

The modern Wall Sculpture " Stope Bench” is a unique metal Mural made from a burnout mold by David Marshall in 2021, sand cast brass and steel in our foundry, handcrafted by the Ar...

The modern Wall Sculpture " Lignite ” is a dynamic fusion of aluminum and steel, designed to create visual interest and depth. The aluminum components are lightweight and feature a ...

The modern Wall Sculpture " Mekong ” is a unique metal Mural made from a burnout mold by David Marshall in 2021, sand cast in aluminium and steel in our foundry, handcrafted by the ...