Mystery of John Constable’s impossible rainbow solved
A re-examination of the iconic John Constable work, Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows, has found that the original 1831 exhibited version of the painting did not have a rainbow – and that it was added later to correspond with the time of his best friend’s death over a year later.
The new research by John Thornes, emeritus professor of applied meteorology at the University of Birmingham, explains how the painter’s considerable understanding of rainbows suggest it was added in at a later date as an homage to John Fisher, who died on August 25 1832.
Constable also depicted the end of the rainbow resting on Archdeacon John Fisher’s house, where Constable stayed during his visits to Salisbury.
Constable was well-known for his thirst for meteorological knowledge which propelled him to paint more natural-looking skies than most other English artists before or since.
Professor Thornes said: “Constable was a great believer that painting is a science, something that should be pursued with the aim of understanding the laws of nature.
“This approach is clearly applied to the clouds and weather in his works, but it was not the case with all of his depictions of rainbows. Unlike clouds, rainbows are seen much less frequently in his work and were therefore often more mysterious in their symbolic function.”
Professor Thornes’ previous research into Constable’s work concluded that the rainbow was meteorologically impossible from the implied position of the sun in the sky.
He used computer software to calculate the “solar geometry” of any rainbow at Salisbury and the probability of such a rainbow being visible to Constable.
Professor Thornes said: “Our understanding of the history of this work will now have to be rewritten. Of course, it’s very possible that there are number of other secrets that lie within the skies of his works and those of his contemporaries.”
The painting was bought for the nation in 2013 for £23 million and currently resides close to home at the Salisbury Museum.