B.

This exhibition of Victorian oil paintings was put together by New Zealand Breweries Ltd and shown to the public for the first time. This collection of paintings form the approximate period 1850-1890 was acquired during overseas visits by Sir Ernest Davis, well known through out New Zealand for his philanthropy. The collection then passed to New Zealand Breweries. The paintings were removed form the Grand Hotel, Rotorua in 1973, just prior to a disastrous fire and taken to Auckland for a complete and thorough restoration.

The paintings were augmented by antiques from the period sourced locally.

Summer (1891) by William Reynolds-Stephens, a five foot by ten foot painting needed eight men to unpack it from the crate.