William Bradford was born in Salem on the North Shore of Massachusetts and raised in the whaling town of New Bedford, near Cape Cod.  In 1853, Bradford established a studio in Fairhaven, Massachusetts, overlooking the harbor. Bradford became intimately acquainted with his subjects because of the close proximity to the ships he painted. “The whaleships that appear in Bradford's paintings are new vessels, and reflect the innovation in ship design…which swept through the nation’s shipyards between 1850 and 1857.” (R.C. Kugler, William Bradford: Sailing Ships & Arctic Seas, exhibition catalogue, New Bedford, Massachusetts, 2003, p. 6) Indeed, the artist expertly captures the ship’s sharp bow and intricate sails in the present work, which is one of just sixteen known whaleship portraits by Bradford and one of only four that are dated by the artist.

The present work depicts the whaleship Emma C. Jones sailing across Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts, complete with the Jones house flag flying atop her mast. Constructed in 1849 by the eminent Fairhaven ship designer Reuben Fish to the order of Edward Coffin Jones, the whaleship—weighing in at about 347 tons—was named after Jones’ second daughter, Emma Coffin Jones. Surrounded by smaller ships populating the choppy sea, the grand vessel is placed before the Dumpling Rocks Light, which also appears in the background of Bradford’s Harbor Scene, Buzzards Bay (lot 43). The accurate portrayal of the lighthouse is complemented by the detail of the rocky hill upon which the structure sits. Bradford’s close observation extends both to the faithful portraits of the ships themselves, as well as to the coastline and seascape that he knew so well.

A testament to the artist’s astute attention to detail and his familiarity with Massachusetts's coastline, The Whaleship Emma C. Jones off Round Hills, New Bedford is a striking example of the best of Bradford’s ability. With the American flag prominently flying from the whaleship, Bradford paints a stunning scene intrinsically rooted in the American shipbuilding tradition and shaped by the beauty of the New England coastline. The present work is a rare, dated example of Bradford’s whaleship portraits, admirably capturing the grandeur and historical significance of his subject, the Emma C. Jones. Other examples of Bradford’s named whaleship portraits can be found in multiple institutional collections, including the New Bedford Whaling Museum, Massachusetts.