Martyr of Solway

The martyr of the title was Margaret Wilson, a member of the Free Church who refused to recognise the established Church of Scotland. The painting shows her chained to rocks on the Solway Firth where she and a friend were condemned to death by drowning in 1685. It is said that as the tide rose she defiantly quoted and sang from scripture, and witnesses described how her hair floated around her head like a halo in the clear water.

The painting we see shows Margaret wearing an open-neck blouse, however when conservators x-rayed the piece they found that this poignant picture was originally a nude. The Pre-Raphaelite artist John Everett Millais had painted Margaret in around 1871 without her shirt, with clothing being added later to placate delicate Victorian sensibilities.

The Martyr of Solway is on display in the Walker Art Gallery. Learn more about the Walker Art Gallery's collections.

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