Churchill’s painting of B.C. lake goes on sale

Albertans looking to purchase a piece of history can bid on a painting of a popular destination in the Rockies by Sir Winston Churchill.

The oil painting is of Emerald Lake in B.C., about 200 kilometres west of Calgary, and is one of only a handful of works done by the former prime minister of the United Kingdom while on a visit to Canada in 1929.

During the British Bulldog’s trip through the Rocky Mountains with his son, Randolph, his brother, Jack, and his nephew, Jonny, Churchill painted both Lake Louise and Emerald Lake.

The painting of Emerald Lake appears to have seen some damage over the years as some of the paint has peeled off. Nevertheless, Sotheby’s of London will auction off the piece March 20 and expects it could sell for more than Cdn.$14,000.

The 34- by 49-centimetre oil on canvas painting is being sold through the auction house by the descendant of Sgt. Edmund Murray, who was Churchill’s bodyguard from 1950 to 1965.

On its website, Sotheby ’s said the painting was a gift from Churchill to Murray, who later added an incorrect inscription identifying the lake as Lake Louise, “however, the correct subject is undoubtedly Lake Emerald.”

Before he died in 1965, Churchill was prime minister of the U.K. from 1940 to 1945, and again from 1951 to 1955. The painting is registered with the Churchill Archive as cat. no.C543 and can be viewed on Sotheby ’s website by searching for ‘Lake Emerald.’

Emerald Lake is just north of Field, B.C., and has a historic lodge on site which is open year-round.