The Customs House

Please find the size options below. These refer to the dimensions of the image only. All Medici prints come with a border around the image with the title and artist name printed at the foot of the sheet.

Samuel Owen (c.1769-1857). Nothing is recorded of Samuel Owen before 1794, when he exhibited a watercolour of a sea scene at the Royal Academy. This was followed by other marine and shipping subjects including several naval engagements; all were distinguished by their freshness of colour and careful draughtsmanship. Owen was also inspired by the Thames, and made a series of eighty-four drawings which were engraved by William Bernard Cooke for his work ‘The Thames’, published in 1811. ‘The Customs House’ belongs to a set of eight drawings he then made for the book ‘A Picturesque Tour of the Thames’, published by himself and William Westall, R.A. in 1828. Owen’s drawings were engraved by R. G. Reeve. In 1817 a new Customs House building, designed by Laing, was opened, replacing the old one which had been destroyed by fire. Standing on the original site adjoining Billingsgate, the Portland Stone frontage was an imposing sight. The foundations, however, proved inadequate and the central component had to be rebuilt under the direction of Sir Robert Smirke. This was opened in 1828, the year of Owen’s drawing, and stood intact until it was badly damaged during the 1939-1945 war, after which much of the building had to be renewed.

255gsm Art Paper

Our standard prints are reproduced on a premium semi matt finish paper. Its micro-porous resin coating provides exceptional colour accuracy and stability

315gsm Museum Quality Watercolour Art Board, Acid Free

Our watercolour board has a natural white finish with a slightly structured, soft-textured surface equivalent to a traditional etching fine art paper. The surface has a special matte coating, designed for high quality fine art reproduction with giclée technology. It is an archival quality paper with great colour accuracy.

Standard Delivery

Standard Delivery items are usually dispatched within 2 working days of the order being placed. We aim to deliver within:

3-5 working days for UK
4-7 working days for Europe
7-10 working days for USA, Canada, Fast East, Australasia and the rest of the world.

Delivery Prices

Standard UK delivery from £3.50
Europe & the rest of the world from £8.00
All prints will be tissue wrapped, bubble wrapped and packed into robust cardboard tubes.