RESPONSES flooded in from Retro readers eager to crack the mystery surrounding a painting by a local artist.

The picture by Reading artist Eleanor May Skrimshire was featured on October 17, and was being sold by Thimbleby & Shorland, who were struggling to identify the scene captured in the 1942 painting.

Judith Lawrence, from Earley, wrote to say the view shows the Castle Hill area of Reading – showing Reading Minster Church of St Mary the Virgin, in St Mary’s Butts.

She said: “The church in the background is St Laurence’s and the large building to the left could be the Town Hall, Museum and Library though I would have expected to see these closer to St Laurence’s.”

Elaine Blake, from Reading Museum, confirmed it, suggesting the painting probably shows the view from the back of Miss Skrimshire’s house.

She said: “The artist is looking into the town centre from Coley Hill, across the houses to Castle Hill and onto St Mary’s Minster. The Town Hall and St Laurence’s are visible in the distance to the centre and the right.”

Elaine was also able to explain more about Miss Skrimshire, confirming she moved to Reading in the 1900s and earned a living cycling around the area as a travelling art teacher.

As a stalwart of the Reading Guild of Artists for 40 years, her home in Coley Hill was a hub of the local art scene for many years with painters meeting regularly at her house for ‘Monday night at Skrimmy’s’.

Reading Museum has a number of works by Miss Skrimshire – mainly all watercolours and many are of local scenery, including an image from the back of her home under snow.