Castle Acre Priory, Norfolk c. 1804

This watercolor, created around 1804 by English artist John Sell Cotman, depicts the ruins of Castle Acre Priory in Norfolk. Cotman, a key figure in the Norwich School of painting, captured the crumbling grandeur of the priory through delicate washes of color. The image highlights the architectural details of the remaining structure and evokes a sense of time and decay, contrasting the crumbling stone with the calm presence of cows in the foreground. Cotman's romantic and melancholic portrayal of the past contributed to the Romantic movement's fascination with Gothic architecture and historical ruins.