A watercolour showing two monochrome bistre coastal landscapes, possibly executed under the tutelage of WL Leitch. Trees are shown on a hill in the foreground of the upper study, with the sea shown behind. Sailing boats are shown on the water in the background. In the study below, the sea is shown in the foreground, with a sailing boat shown to the right. Hills are shown along the coastline behind and a building, possibly Osborne House, is shown in the background to the left.

From the age of eight Queen Victoria received regular lessons in drawing and watercolour from professional artists including Richard Westall (1765 – 1836) and Edward Lear (1812 – 88). However, it was the Scottish landscape painter William Leighton Leitch (1804 – 83) with whom she had the most enduring relationship, as he taught her for 22 years. Before teaching Queen Victoria, Leitch had established an impressive reputation as an art tutor, with his pupils including the Duchess of Buccleuch, the Duchess of Sutherland and Queen Victoria’s lady-in-waiting Charlotte Canning.