It is also sold.

Drat!

Now I only have one “Blue Flue” marine art left… http://www.frickers.co.uk/marine-art/agapenor_bombay.html

The Blue Funnel steamer Talthybius is not even on the web site yet, sold in less than a month so I’ll show you am few details below.

The Blue Funnel ship Talthybius was  painted on speculation as a possible exhibition piece for the proposed one man show at the European Parliament.

Also because I wanted to look again at the possibilities offered by moonlight:

because I am also working on another moonlight scene, this one being in the form of two paintings of the same subject, one large one small, Plymouth Cattewater by moonlight.

The story of this major new painting is emerging elsewhere on this blog…

An offer was made, an offer which I could not refuse by a delightful gentleman who’s emails had me laughing several times,

Now I only have one Blue Flue marine painting and may have to paint another for the show.

Any Ideas for a subject?
I have two ideas, how about you, a favourite ship worth recording in a marine painting?

Meanwhile I only have Agapenor at Bombay left in my reserve collection.

I guess I had better add another Blue Funnel ship to the growing list of paintings I should get on with.

Next though will be a new version of Trafalgar Dawn, the French perspective and a new painting of the voayage of the French discoverer Laperouse plus I also need examples of new cruise and cargo ships but which to choose?

There was a time when to take the “ferry ‘cross the Mersey” meant weaving between Blue Funnel ships.

A detail of this new marine painting is shown here, the complete picture and ships history is below.

The Blue Funnel Line fleet grew from the enthusiasm of a railway engineer.
Alfred Holt, in the 1852 who became part owner of the sailing ship “Dumbarton Youth”, fitted with 2 – 44 HP engines.
Included in the ship where a large number of bibles and a quantity of blue paint.

We don’t know what happened to the bibles.

Alfred Holt’s business was successful, trading initially to the Mediterranean and West Indies.

Joined by his brother Phillip Holt in 1865 they were soon  trading as The Ocean Steam Ship Company.

Considering this was the greatest adventure of their lives and the Odyssey the finest tale ever written they began to give their ships distinctively Homeric names and of course the famous blue flues.

~

Gordon Frickers started this painting inspired and encouraged by his good friend and supporter Harry Milsom, former editor of Sea Breezes, some 15 years ago then abandoned it, unfinished.
In 2009 having been invited to exhibit his work at the European Parliament, Brussels, while sorting out paintings at his studio in SW France at Itzac in the Midi Pyrenees, Gordon Frickers discovered several unfinished works.
Re inspired by the fabulous moon rises and night skies often seen over this part of France this painting returned to his easel.

Actual size of this painting, 405 x 605 mm, 24″ x 16″, price £750.00

~

From 1865, The business of The Ocean Steam Ship Company prospered, to grow eventually to include
Nederlandssche Stoomvaart Maatschappij “Oceaan”,
the China Mutual Steam Navigation Company,
Thomas Royden and sons (New York),
the Knight Line,
Cowie and Company, and in particular
the Glen Line (All ships names pre fixed with “Glen”) which in turn added the Shire Line forming a company of some 90 merchant ships.

Not all these ships had the renowned blue flue.
The Glen Line and Nederlandssche Stoomvaart Maatschappij ~ NSM “Oceaan” ships sported black topped red funnels however their livery was otherwise identical.

The phrase “Blue flue” was though, in such popular usage the some 100 years after the founding of The Ocean Steam Ship Company, Blue Funnel Line Ltd became a registered company name.

This hard working company enjoyed an excellent reputation for reliable sound ships, well officered, no “coffin ships” there…
Together they made a real contribution to the prosperity of the world we have inherited and to Britain in particular.
There was a price to pay, the stout ships and their brave crews endured much hard work, long voyages and storms in safety but proved especially vulnerable during the 2 world wars.

The artist was fortunate to meet some of the former officers and visit the offices of The Ocean Steam Ship Company in Liverpool before the company finally ceased to manage ships.

~
The ship featured in this painting is the “TALTHYBIUS”.

Named for Talthybius, (as is one of the asteroids of the planet Jupiter) who had an important role early in the tale of Homer’s The Iliad, the Greek version of the Trojan War.

If you are not familiar with the Iliad, here is a brief intro to the opening scenes.
You may soon see why the tale has endured 2,500 years…

Talthybius appears as a faithful if reluctant squire and diplomat for King Agamemnon, an ambassador.
The Iliad opens with King Agamemnon in dispute with Apollo over a mistress.

The drama increases when King Agamemnon decides in frustration to steal Achilles captive girl Briseis as a substitute.
A good idea?

Achilles is not amused in fact he is seriously angry with this injustice.
Achilles went to sulk in his tent and thus deprived the Greeks of their foremost champion during the Trojan War.

Solution, a rather unenthusiastic Talthybius with Eurybates were sent to fetch Briseis, their task to bring some order into a disordered world.

Happily for Talthybius and Eurybates, Achilles receives them gracefully and gave up Briseis.
Did anyone ask Briseis what she wanted?

Brisēis was a Trojan widow who was abducted during the Trojan War by Achilles after the death of her three brothers and husband, King Mynes of Lyrnessus.

Talthybius is hardly mentioned again in the Iliad, he does though appear in the notable play, “The Trojan Women” by Euripides.

Talthybius is said to have died at Aegium in Achaia where his descendants became heralds and allegedly still live.

~

This ship “Talthybius”

Built 1912 by Scotts Shipbuilding & Engineering Co, Greenock, 10,224 gross registered tonnage.

An uneventful career until 1941 when at Liverpool she was hit twice by bombs on May 4th and 8th.
1942 ~ Talthybius was again struck by bombs.
This time at Singapore, the perpetrators being the Japanese.
Holed and on fire, her Chinese crew abandoned her.
Her British officers extinguished the fires and moved her to a dry dock where they attempted to plug her holes.
The order to abandon Talthybius was reluctantly obeyed on February 12, 2 days after it was given.
The master and officers escaped the advancing Japanese who seized Talthybius on the 16th and sent her to sea as the Taruyasu Maru.
1945 ~ On the 30th of June Taruyasu Maru ex Talthybius struck an American mine at Toyama bay North of Honshu.
Her crew managed to beach her at Maizuru Harbour where she remained until after the war.
She was raised and repaired, putting back to sea as Empire Evenlode managed by the (British) Ministry of War Transport.
1948 ~ Hong Kong, Dec 1, placed with Alfred Holt & Co who sent a master and officers (by air) and hired a Chinese crew.
She is said to have had her funnel painted “the best shade of blue available”.
At Seletar Naval Base she loaded with scrap iron and steel, war debris for a voyage to England.
With her Suez Certificate lost and no chance of another she headed for Durban and the Cape of Good Hope.
She had to put in to Mombassa for new boiler tubes and stopped again at Cape Town for more of the same.
1949 ~ Talthybius finally made Swansea on May the 8th having spent some of the voyage moving so slowly she displayed 2 black balls (indicating, technically she was not under way).
After the discharge of her cargo of scrap she herself became scrap, and history.

~

Special thanks and sources:
1.    Sea Breezes editor Harry Milsom
2.    The Legend behind the Name by K S Johnston, N Barber and TJ Bond ~ no ISBN
3.    Blue Funnels In The Mersey in the 1920’s, compiled by C H Milsom, a Sea breezes Publication, ISBN 0-951-3202-0-3
4.    Visit to the offices and archives of The Ocean Steam Ship Company, Liverpool.

A “lost” painting found while re organising at my new home at Itzac.
This charming painting of a “blue flue” is one of a series and the only one I have left after I painted ships with links to the Alfred Holt & Company businesses.

Not so long ago you could not visit the Port of Liverpool without seeing a Blue Funnel Line ship or several, likewise the Suez Canal and many renowned ports of the east.

You can enquire about commissioning paintings at http://www.frickers.co.uk/commission.html, Commissioning paintings, a simple solution and guide

Greek heroes’ provided the names of almost all the Blue Flue ships because the company founder, a Liverpool man, Alfred Holt, who had trained as a railway engineer but found ships more interesting.

His brother Phillip who joined him in 1865 after the first voyages considered their shipping line the biggest adventure of their lives and for them the Odyssey was the finest adventure story ever written.

Alfred Holt started his vocation buying shares in the 3 masted ship “Dumbarton Castle” mostly because the “Dumbarton Castle” had 2 direct acting 44 horse power steam engines.

After hand over Alfred found his purchase included a surprising number of bibles and a quantity of a rather good blue paint.

Can you guess the rest?

It was over 100 years before the name Blue Funnel Line became a registered company.

My contacts with the Blue Funnel line which included visits to the offices in Liverpool were encouraged by many ex employees who clearly had a great affection for the company and in particular by my friend the former editor of Sea Breezes magazine, (Harry) CH Milsom.

Agapenor 1947 to 1981 was built by Scotts’ Shipbuilding and Engineering Company of Greenock for the China Mutual Steam Navigation Company who in turn were part of the famous Ocean Steam Navigation Company otherwise known as The Blue Flue Line or The Blue Funnel Line.

1967 saw Agapenor trapped by an Arab Israel war when the Suez Canal was closed. I remember seeing the ships on BBC TV; it was an on going story.

In 1968 the company proposed abandoning the ship but the insurers would not accept that. Eventually the ship was abandoned, in February 1969, and placed in the care of a nearby Czechoslovakian ship, the “Lednice” in 1971.

It was 1975 before the ship was finally ignominiously towed from the canal to Trieste to off load her rather dated cargo.

She was sold to Faynar Shipping Co SA, registered at Panama and renamed Nikos. As such she served until broken up in 1981 at Karachi.

This painting is for sale, no reasonable offer refused

Gordon Frickers © 2009