A Village Choir
Thomas Webster (1800-1886)
1847
Great Britain
Oil on panel
59 x 90 cm
Museum no. FA.222
Given by John Sheepshanks 1857

This work illustrates Washington Irving's 'Christmas Day', from The Sketch Book (1820). His essay was a comical and sentimental account of an old-fashioned village choir and its musicians. The painting was probably Webster's most famous work and was much admired. A critic praised its 'truth and diversity of character'.