The work, which bears the signature “G. Courbet”, displays a high quality of execution, with a brilliant interplay of light and shadow over a reddish lower chromatic layer. Not only does the objective and truthful character of the seascape correspond to the pictorial realism typical of Gustave Courbet’s marine paintings, but microscopic examination of the work also reveals the presence of non-industrial pigments, characteristic of the 19th century and commonly found in the painter’s artistic corpus.