The death of the Venerable Bede. Photograph after W.B. Scott.

Composition known as : Bede finishes his works and life

"The dying saint is represented on the floor of his cell, his head supported by the affectionate younger monks as he continues to dictate his translation of the Gospel of St John. In the background the monks assemble in the church to say the prayer for the passing soul. "--National Trust website

Bede's death on 26 May 735 was described by his disciple Cuthbert. "Bede spent his last hours in working on the De natura rerum of Isidore of Seville (570–636)—probably to correct, possibly to excerpt or translate it—and in dictating an English translation of St John's gospel, which he completed in his final moments."--Oxford dictionary of national biography

[19--?]

1 photograph : photoprint, toned in brown ; sheet 35.4 x 35.9 cm

The painting is signed: W B Scott

Wellcome Collection 3163014i

After one of eight oil paintings illustrating the history of the English Border with Scotland painted between 1856 and 1861

The series of eight paintings was "commissioned in 1855 by Sir Walter Trevelyan to decorate the courtyard at Wallington; began in 1857 and the series was exhibited at regular intervals at the Literary Society in Newcastle and completed in 1861 ... [they were] given with the property to The National Trust in 1941 by Sir Charles Philips Trevelyan, 3rd Bt (1870–1958)"--National Trust website