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A late Victorian shellwork diorama in the shape of a porthole, featuring a chromolithograph of the heroic Grace Darling. In front of the image is an artfully arranged display of shells and seaweed creating a 3D effect to the view. In superb original condition.
 
These shellwork dioramas were produced in the late Victorian/early Edwardian period as souvenirs of coastal towns and seaside locations, often bought by sailors as presents for their sweethearts.
 
Grace Horsley Darling (1815–1842) was an English lighthouse keeper's daughter, participating in the rescue of survivors from the shipwrecked 'Forfarshire' in 1838. The paddle steamer ran aground on the Farne Islands, off the coast of Northumberland. Nine members of the crew were saved.