The inscription reads, ​

‘L Mayer dipince                                                                                                        41

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Veduta della Torre di Freston in Suffolk

Dipinta sopra luogo Martedi 1. Ottobre 1799 tra le 7 e 8 di Mattina’

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(Painted by L Mayer/ (no.) 41/ View of Freston Tower in Suffolk/ Painted on the spot, Tuesday, 1st October, 1799 between 7 and 8 in the morning) 

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A very rare work by Mayer who was commissioned by the Berners family of Woolverstone Hall to capture the most scenic vistas of the Shotley Peninsula.

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Luigi Mayer (c.1750/55-1803) was an artist from Rome of German descent who worked for Sir Robert Ainslie, the British Ambassador in Constantinople, c.1786-94. Mayer made a series of magnificent watercolours of the city and its environs, as well as diplomatic ceremonies, many of which are in the British Museum. In 1792, he accompanied Charles Berners along with George Graves and Henry Tilson on the Ottoman leg of their extended Grand Tour. They visited Egypt, Palestine, Syria and the south-west coast of Turkey, before Mayer returned to Ainslie in Constantinople. In 1794, Mayer accompanied Ainslie on his journey home to England through the Moldo-Wallachian Principalities. Many of his watercolours appeared as aquatints in a series of volumes, published in London, 1801-10.

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Although Mayer was working within the parameters of the British Embassy, records on where he lived or his mode of living do not seem to survive. At some point during his stay, he married Clara (or Chiara) Barthold, some of whose family were dragomans. She was said to have been of either Greek or Bulgarian origin, but very little is known of her, how they met or with whom they associated. She too was an artist, possibly taught by Mayer, since her style closely reflects that of her husband.

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Source: The Levantine Heritage website (https://levantineheritage.com/mayer-paintings.html)