Robert DOWLING
England 1827 – England 1886
Australia 1834-1857, 1884-1886

Sabbath in the country 1859
oil on canvas
50.8 (h) x 35.6 (w) cm
Private collection

On the Sabbath, the ‘Lord’s day of rest’, an old farm labourer, scythe hanging alongside him, and with bread and an overturned mug of ale on the table, dozes off—his hard-earned reward after the hard manual labour of the previous week. It appears that Dowling, a strict Evangelical Christian, had a quiet sense of humour.