Drawing of The Seven Sisters

Drawing in pencil by Arthur Evans of the southernmost peak, named ‘Breitinden’ (910 metres), in The Seven Sisters (De Syv Søstre) range of mountains on the island of Alstenoya, Norway.

Artist: Arthur John Evans
Date of drawing: after 1873 ?
Continent: Europe
Geographical area: Northern Europe
Country: Norway
Region/Place: Nordland; Helgeland; Alstenoya
Format: Drawing
Size: 77 x 131 mm
Acquisition: Joan Evans. Donated August 1941

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Exhibition label: ‘One of three drawings by Arthur Evans, showing mountain landscapes on the northern fringes of Europe, and fine examples of his draughtsmanship, a skill which he employed throughout his career as an archaeologist.’ Source: ‘Travels in Finland and Bosnia-Herzegovina: An Ethnographic Collection of Sir Arthur Evans’, exhibition curated by Philip Grover, Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, 29 April to 1 September 2013.

Primary documentation: ‘[p.588] Dr. JOAN EVANS, from the property of the late SIR ARTHUR EVANS, Youlbury, Boars Hill, Oxford. [List of items follows]’; ‘[p.590] 7 original pencil sketches. Unmounted. Norway, Sweden, Finland’: Pitt Rivers Museum accession records (Donations X, 1937–1941), pp.588, 590. Annotations on drawing: ‘Southernmost of Seven Sisters. Height 2000 ft′.’ (written in pencil below drawing).

Research notes: This drawing would appear not to have been made by Arthur Evans during his trip to Finland in the summer of 1873, since his route on that occasion (along the Swedish coast) did not take in northern Norway. It is not known when the drawing was made.