W. FREDERICK JARVIS (1898-1966). Eucalyptus Trees and Poppies, California. Oil on canvas. 25 x 30 inches (63.5 x 76.2 cm...

Description

W. FREDERICK JARVIS (1898-1966)
Eucalyptus Trees and Poppies, California
Oil on canvas
25 x 30 inches (63.5 x 76.2 cm)
Signed lower left
Titled verso

This painting is a slightly smaller version of the record-setting, Altadena Poppies Altadena California painting in our December 2006 auction. This canvas is from a slightly different view, but the same mountains in the background identify the area as Altadena.

In the early days of Altadena, the hills and fields below the foot of Echo Mountain were covered with poppies, much to the delight of all who laid eyes on them. The Spanish, when sailing up and down the newly-discovered coast, looked inland and saw the "flame" of orange-yellow poppies spread upon the hillsides. This was the "land of fire." They believed the altar cloth of San Pascal was spread upon the hills, and with devotional spirit the explorers disembarked from their ships to worship on the shore.

An Indian legend says the presence of gold in California is due to the petals that have fallen year after year, and sank into the soil.

It is now difficult to recognize the area these golden flowers once inhabited. The only indication left of the stunning beauty of the Altadena poppy area are street names like Poppyfield Drive, old postcards from the early 1900s, and the few surviving paintings like Jarvis's Eucalyptus Trees and Poppies, California. Sadly, the once abundant poppies are a casualty of modern development.

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