Inside the East End of Nettley Abbey

About the Artwork

By the end of the 18th century, Britain’s medieval ruins had become popular tourist destinations and a rich source of inspiration for Romantic poets and painters, establishing a veritable "cult of ruins." Decaying Gothic architecture set in overgrown landscapes conjured thoughts of the transience of human ambition in the context of eternal nature. In 1755, the writer and Whig politician Horace Walpole described Netley Abbey: "The ruins are vast . . . with all variety of Gothic patterns of windows wrapped round and round with ivy—many trees are sprouted up against the walls and want only to be increased with cypresses! In short, they are not the ruins of Netley, but of Paradise." Michael Angelo Rooker’s drawing gives form to Walpole’s description of his magical visit to the ruined abbey.

Inscriptions

inscribed, in graphite, upper left edge: Inside of the East End of Nettley [sic] Abbey - Oct 7, 1794; inscribed, in graphite, on verso, at center: Inside of the East end of Netley. Abbey Oct 7th 1794

Provenance

1965: (sale, Christie's, London, November 16, 1965, no. 174) after 1965-before 1984: J. Dayes, Esq. 1984: (sale, Sotheby's, London, November 21, 1984, no. 88) after 1984-before 2005: Harry and Nina Pollock, Cleveland Heights, OH 2005: Painting and Drawing Society, Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH 2005-: Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Exhibition history

British Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of Art . The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 10-May 26, 2013).

Quick Overview

Artist: Michel Angelo Rooker (British, 1746–1801)
Date: 1794
Medium: gray wash with extensive point of brush with traces of graphite; squared with graphite
Dimensions: Overall: 23.5 x 30.2 cm (9 1/4 x 11 7/8 in.)
Type: Drawing
Classification: Drawing
Department: Drawings
Credit line: Gift of the Painting and Drawing Society of The Cleveland Museum of Art
Accession no.: 2005.199

Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.