From the early eighteenth century, the lure of Italy and the ruins of Classical antiquity proved irresistible to artists and travellers. The Grand Tour became a rite of passage, but the Napoleonic Wars disrupted safe travel and the Continent was effectively cut off from Britain for many years. With the end of hostilities in 1815 travellers returned to Europe and Rome became the epicentre for a new generation, drawn to the ruins of an ancient world and a favourable climate. For these nineteenth-century travellers a more Romantic vision would prevail, with increasing emphasis on the subjective experience of the artist.

The four years that Bridell spent in Italy were the most successful and productive of his short career. For James Wolff, he painted. The Coliseum at Rome by Moonlight (Southampton City Art Gallery) and he also travelled to the Italian lakes, where he painted grand landscapes such as The Woods of Sweet Chestnut above Varenna, Lake Como (Tate, London).

The Arch of Titus is an exceptional, large-scale painting executed by Bridell during his stay in Rome. It is preserved in outstanding condition and housed in its original exhibition frame. The painting shows an instantly recognisable landmark from classical Rome but Bridell portrays a romantic scene where past and present converge. Under a bright, open sky, a herdsman drives his cattle through one of the most famous Roman triumphal arches, guiding them forward with a long staff. As he moves his herd through this ancient world, he is both a part of it and yet a quiet witness to its passing, a sign of continuity amidst the decaying remnants of a lost civilisation.

A year later Bridell would succumb to tuberculosis at the age of thirty-two. In his obituary printed in The Art Journal in 1864, the poet Sir Theodore Martin lamented: “Had he lived, he must have earned a European reputation; and numerous and fine as are the works he has left, his early death is, in the interests of Art, deeply to

be deplored”.