Making her escape amid a volley of shot and shell from a pursuing British man o war, the daring pirate ship WILWATCH flies toward the safest port far away from her crew’s infamous villainy. With her sails riddled with cannon shot yet still full of wind, she makes good her escape beneath a brooding sky illuminated by a single shaft of light breaking through the clouds.

In this extremely rare painting of a contemporary pirate scene Thomas Buttersworth has exquisitely captured first hand the drama and excitement of the buccaneers’ trade. One of the very few paintings of pirate vessels created during the period they were still sailing, this remarkable image offers a fascinating view of what it was like sailing beneath the skull and crossbones.