The Druids Collecting Mistletoe
Jacob Thompson, 1832

Jacob ThompsonÂ’s painting of druids engaged in the ancient ritual of gathering mistletoe is not only a masterly depiction of a romantic scene, but also a social document of rich value to the people of Penrith. Thompson was born in the Cumbrian town and first worked as a sign painter before a local patron, William, Earl of Lonsdale, encouraged him to train at the Royal Academy Schools of Art in London. He quickly excelled and became a successful portrait painter with a studio in Hanover Square. But Cumbria was in ThompsonÂ’s blood and in 1841 he returned to live in the area with his wife and child, earning his living by painting local scenes and exhibiting regularly at the Royal Academy. The Druids Cutting Down the Mistletoe shows figures at work in a wooded clearing in the Eden Valley, the magnificent Bronze Age stone circle of Long Meg and Her Daughters clearly visible in the distance. According to ThompsonÂ’s biographer, Llewellyn Jewitt, the painting was commissioned by Colonel Samuel Lacy, owner of the monument and surrounding land. The painting now joins other works by Thompson in the Penrith and Eden Museum, which is just five miles from the scene it shows, and provides an evocative example of how prehistoric sites were admired and represented by Victorian artists.
More information
Title of artwork, date
The Druids Collecting Mistletoe, 1832
Date supported
2015
Medium and material
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
99.1 x 124.5 cm
Grant
6000
Total cost
30000

Get a National Art Pass and explore Penrith and Eden Museum
You'll see more art and your membership will help museums across the UK
Art Funded by you FAQs
Contact us
If you have a question about a work of art in our archive, please contact the Programmes team. We’ll be happy to answer your enquiry.