18th Century and Earlier Portrait Paintings

Antique Flemish Baroque painting, 17th century, portrait, Medici. Oil on canvas. The painting is probably attributed to the Flemish painter Justus Sustermns. Pictured is most likel...

Francis Hayman RA 1708–1776 Self-Portrait Oil on oak panel Image size: 8 x 6¼ inches Contemporary gilt frame This newly discovered work is the earliest known self portrait by Francis Hayman, dated to the mid to late 1720’s. The small scale of the portrait gives it a strong sense of intimacy. Whereas clients would often dress themselves in their best clothes for a sitting, Hayman has portrayed himself in informal attire, with his shirt unbuttoned and a wig cap. Born in 1708 to a respectable Devonshire family, his training began at the tender age of ten under the tutelage of the historical painter Robert Brown, who was probably an uncle. By the 1730’s he is known to have been engaged in painting scenery for the popular theatres on Goodman’s Fields and Drury Lane. He established a studio on St Martin’s Lane, and demonstrated his versatility as one of the most important painters of his time in portraits, illustration and history painting. Indeed, he was one of the first English painters deemed to have the skill and proficiency to rival that of the foreign masters, such as Holbein and Kneller, who were brought in by the court to make up for the perceived shortcomings of the native artists. Led by William Hogarth, Hayman and other artists began to create a new movement in the English art world. Thomas Gainsborough was one of his pupils, whom he is said to have introduced to the more lascivious and debauched underbelly of London life. After mostly making his living as an illustrator, in the 1740’s Hayman was commissioned by the proprietor of the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, Jonathan Tyers, to produce a series of four large celebratory canvases depicting British victories from the Seven Years War. His association with Tyers continued, and over the next ten years he produced a number of large decorative paintings...

English family portrait from the late 18th century. The canvas is aged accordingly with newsprint from October 1847. The painting is framed in a decorative gold frame with an open ba...

Early 17th-century copper painting depicting a religious scene, School Annunciation, Oil on Copper attributed to Cornelis SCHUT, painter of Antwerp (159...

THOMAS HUDSON 1701 – 1779 Portrait of Mrs Faber Oil on canvas Image size: 29 x 24 ½ inches Contemporary gilt frame Mrs Faber was the wife of John Faber J...

Portrait of the Hon. James Thynne (c. 1680-1704), full-length, in the gardens of Longleat House, seated beside a fountain, holding a shell beneath water spouting from a horn blown by a cherub on a dolphin. A glimpse of part of Longleat House can be seen upper left. Oil on canvas in a period giltwood frame, decorated with leaves and acorns. C. 1682. Dimensions: 145 x 123cm (57 x 48in) in frame Provenance: Ex Longleat House, Wiltshire Private collection, Bath James Thynne was the youngest son of Thomas Thynne, 1st Viscount Weymouth and Frances Finch of Longleat House, Wiltshire. He died in his youth and his Aunt, Anne Kingsmill Finch, Countess of Winchilsea (1661-1720), wrote a moving poem on his death. He was buried in the family vault at Longbridge Deverill, Wiltshire. A mezzotint of this painting by William Faithorne the Younger is held in the Royal Collection. Johann Kerseboom (d.1708) was the nephew of Frederick Kerseboom and first worked in Germany before coming to England in the 1680's where his sitters included the 'Electress Sophia Dorothea' (known from a mezzotint by William Faithorne). His early works were influenced by William Wissing...

Guardian Angel Italian School, 17th century Oil painting on copper, framed Framed size: 12 x 10.5 inches Fine quality early Italian Old Master oil on copper panel, dating to the 17t...

Portrait painting of a young woman dressed in black with a bonnet. The woman has a rose in her right hand and presents her left hand with a r...

Circle of Gerard van Honthorst 1592 - 1656 Portrait of a Gentleman Oil on wooden panel Image size: 29 x 23 inches Contemporary gilt frame Gerard van Honthorst was a Dutch Golden Age...

Thomas Hudson 1701 – 1779 Portrait of a Lady Oil on canvas Image size: 30 x 25 inches Original carved giltwood frame Hudson had many assistants, and employed the specialist drapery ...

Provenance: Suida-Manning Collection, New York Private Collection Exhibited: Venetian Paintings of the Sixteenth Century, Finch College Museum of Art, New York, October 30-December 15, 1963, no. 31. Veronese & His Studio in North American Collections, Birmingham Museum of Art, Oct. 1-Nov. 15, 1972, and Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Dec. 5-Dec. 31, 1972 Literature: Robert L. Manning, A Loan Exhibition of Venetian Paintings of the Sixteenth Century, exh. cat. New York 1963, cat. no. 31ill., as by Veronese Stephen Clayton and Edward Weeks, eds., introduction by David Rosand, Veronese & His Studio in North American Collections, Birmingham 1972, as by Veronese, p. 38 ill. Terisio Pignatti, Veronese, Venice 1976, I, p. 199, cat. no. A225, II, fig. 908, as attributed to Veronese Terisio Pignatti and Filippo Pedrocco, Veronese; catalogo completo dei dipinti, Florence 1991, no. 54°, as attributed to Veronese. Terisio Pignatti and Filippo Pedrocco, Veronese, Milan 1995, II, pp. 517-518ill., cat. no. A 56, under attributed paintings, by Veronese and workshop) John Garton, Grace and Grandeur; The Portraiture of Paolo Veronese, London-Turnhout 2008, p. 237, fig. 77, cat. no. R16, as workshop of Veronese. Scarsellino’s art is widely regarded as critical link between the Renaissance and the Baroque styles in Emilian painting; not only was he an important transmitter of the heritage of the Renaissance, but he was also open to innovative ideas, and was one of the earliest to experiment with the trend to naturalism that would become fundamental to art of the new century. Born around 1550, he received his earliest training from his father Sigismondo, an architect and painter; it was probably while working at his father’s side as a youth that he acquired the nickname Scarsellino, or “little Scarsella”. After absorbing the principles of his art in Ferrara and Parma, he went to Venice in 1570, staying for four years and working in the shop of Veronese. In the following decade, his art —especially in terms of its piety and its development of landscape— demonstrates a strong sympathy with that of the Carracci, with whom he worked in 1592-1593 at the Palazzo dei Diamanti in Ferrara. Maria Angela Novelli and later Alessandra Frabetti both propose that Scarsellino traveled to Rome, although such a trip has not been documented; if he did travel to Rome, it probably would have occurred during the years that Scarsellino’s colleagues Agostino and Annibale Carracci were there, that is, beginning in 1595 and until 1609. The last decades of Scarsellino’s career again involve stylistic experimentation, this time in a manner that would bring his work very close to the progressive figurative naturalism of Carlo Bononi and prepare the way for Guercino. The present portrait of a distinguished gentleman had been long thought to be by Paolo Veronese and was in fact attributed to him by such distinguished connoisseurs as Adolfo Venturi and Wilhelm Suida. The portrait’s style is, however, distinct from Veronese’s, although clearly indebted to it, and the attribution to the young Scarsellino is wholly convincing. The painting would then date from the 1570s – a date confirmed by the costume the subject wears. The puffed hat that appears in the painting had a rather short-lived vogue in the early 1570s. One sees it in Giambattista Moroni’s Portrait of Count...

After Sir Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641) Portrait of Sir Edward Lord Littleton, First Baron Lyttleton (1589-1645) Oil on canvas Image size: 96 by 76 cm Hand carved auricular frame Sir Edward Littleton was Solicitor-General to Charles I, 1634-40; Chief Justice of Common Pleas, January 1640-January 1641; Lord Keeper, 1641-45. Painted in his robes, and wearing the chain of office...

The pendant to the present portrait showing John Pitcairn's wife Jean, née Robertson, is in the Huntington Art Gallery, San Marino. Both works are datable to the 1790s. Pitcairn, who served as Provost of Dundee from 1782-84, a position his father-in-law also held from 1731-32, later sat to Raeburn for another portrait, dated to circa 1820, which is now in the Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh Sale of Christie's London: Wednesday, July 9, 2014 [Lot 00212] Old Master & British Paintings Day Sale Sold For 22,500 GBP Premium Provenance By descent from the sitter to his great-grandson, Ronald Andrew Pitcairn of Pitcullo; Christie's, London, 25 June 1904, lot 58 (200 gns. to Wallis). Alexander Reid, Glasgow. With Agnew's, London, where acquired by A.R. Wilson Wood, 7 April 1909; Christie's, London, 26 June 1914, lot 78 (850 gns. to Agnew). Anonymous sale; Christie's, London, 24 November 1972, lot 27 (320 gns.) Private collection, Dublin, Ireland Exhibition Edinburgh, Royal Scottish Academy, 1876, no. 256 Literature W. Armstrong, Sir Henry Raeburn, London, 1901, p. 110. J. Greig, Sir Henry Raeburn, R.A., His life and work with a catalogue of his pictures, London, 1911, p. 55. R. Asleson and S.M. Bennett, British Paintings at The Huntington, New Haven and London, 2001, p. 312, fig. 12 Sir Henry Raeburn FRSE RA RSA (4 March 1756 – 8 July 1823) was a Scottish portrait painter and Scotland's first significant portrait painter since the Union to remain based in Scotland. He served as Portrait Painter to King George IV in Scotland. Raeburn was born the son of a manufacturer in Stockbridge, on the Water of Leith: a former village now within the city of Edinburgh. He had an older brother, born in 1744, called William Raeburn. His ancestors were believed to have been soldiers, and may have taken the name "Raeburn" from a hill farm in Annandale, held by Sir Walter Scott's family. Orphaned, he was supported by William and placed in Heriot's Hospital, where he received an education. At the age of fifteen he was apprenticed to the goldsmith James Gilliland of Edinburgh, and various pieces of jewellery, mourning rings and the like, adorned with minute drawings on ivory by his hand, still exist. Soon he took to the production of carefully finished portrait miniatures; meeting with success and patronage, he extended his practice to oil painting, at which he was self-taught. Gilliland watched the progress of his pupil with interest, and introduced him to David Martin, who had been the favourite assistant of Allan Ramsay the Latter, and was now the leading portrait painter in Edinburgh. Raeburn was especially aided by the loan of portraits to copy. Soon he had gained sufficient skill to make him decide to devote himself exclusively to painting. George Chalmers (1776; Dunfermline Town Hall) is his earliest known portrait. In his early twenties, Raeburn was asked to paint the portrait of a young lady he had noticed when he was sketching from nature in the fields. Ann was the daughter of Peter Edgar of Bridgelands, and widow of Count James Leslie of Deanhaugh. Fascinated by the handsome and intellectual young artist, she became his wife within a month, bringing him an ample fortune. The acquisition of wealth did not affect his enthusiasm or his industry, but spurred him on to acquire a thorough knowledge of his craft. It was usual for artists to visit Italy, and Raeburn set off with his wife. In London he was kindly received by Sir Joshua Reynolds, the president of the Royal Academy, who advised him on what to study in Rome, especially recommending the works of Michelangelo, and gave Raeburn letters of introduction for Italy. In Rome he met his fellow Scot Gavin Hamilton, Pompeo Girolamo Batoni and Byers, an antique dealer whose advice proved particularly useful, especially the recommendation that "he should never copy an object from memory, but, from the principal figure to the minutest accessory, have it placed before him." After two years of study in Italy he returned to Edinburgh in 1787, and began a successful career as a portrait painter. In that year he executed a seated portrait of the second Lord President Dundas. Examples of his earlier portraiture include a bust of Mrs Johnstone of Baldovie and a three-quarter-length of Dr James Hutton...

Jacob Huysmans Flemish 1633 - 1696 Portrait of a Lady Oil on canvas Image size: 49 x 40 ¼ inches Gilt frame Huysmans was born in Antwerp and came to England during the reign of Charles II where he became one of the fashionable painters of the court.. The diarist Samual Pepys noted the artist as capable of a more exact likeness than Lely. Certainly the diarist records that by August 1664 in the circle of Queen Catherine...

Sir Nathaniel Dance-Holland (1750-1811) was an English portrait painter and one of the founding members of the Royal Academy in 1768. Justly celebrated in his lifetime he won several...

Sir Godfrey Kneller with the studio, Inscribed Mr. Bagnal Lower left. Godfrey Kneller and studio, relined, old cleaning. Old Frame. The frame was repainted and has some chipping an...

Gilbert Jackson English Active: 1620 - 1650 Portrait of a Girl Oil on panel, signed upper left and Inscribed upper right Image size: 24 ½ x 20 inches Contemporary style hand made...

John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich (13 November 1718 – 30 April 1792) Attributed to George Knapton (1698-1778) Dressed in the Turkish manner, stand...

Margaret 'Peg' Woffington, was born in Dublin around 1714. Her charm and beauty as a child attracted much attention quickly resulting in her first stage role at the precocious age of 10. Her first important appearance was as Ophelia in 1737 in Dublin, followed by her greatest role, the male part of Sir Harry Windair in Farquhar's Constant Couple, which in 1740 led to her engagement by John Rich...

The Knight is an original painting realized by Pietro della Vecchia during the XVII century. Oil on board. Original title: Ritratto di giovane cavaliere con cappello piumato. Includ...

This museum quality old master oil on canvas formal portrait painting depicting the family of the Count Zanardi is signed by the artist- the female painter Lucia Casalini Torelli- and published in a book dedicated to Casalini Torelli’s workshop and academy. This palatial masterpiece artwork comes directly from the ancient Villa Maraini Guerrieri - Palidano di Gonzaga (Mantua), an historic Italian heritage building owned by the descendants of the family portrayed for more than two centuries, until 1998. The big scale of this oil on canvas masterpiece painting states the relevance of Lucia Casalini Torelli as a painter. The present artwork is a formal family portrait painting that aim to introduce the characters depicted according to their social role in the society. The noble family is all gathered under a loggia overlooking a park, the landscape in the background is partially covered by a beautiful red cloth on the right side. The father stands up and holds the hand of his eldest son, proudly introducing his future heir. The son wears a light-blue dress and red boots, he is depicted in a serious pose holding a black tricorn hat under his arm and a rapier sword on his belt. The mother wears an elegant gold and dark green brocade dress, she is sitting with her youngest daughter on her knees while her second son is by her side. The little daughter wears a lovely long red and dress with white lace and holds an apple on her hand. The son stands next to his mother and is dressed in a brown priestly clothes. This palatial old masters piece was probably painted in 1740 due to the similarities with Cardinal Doria’ s portrait, now on display at the Doria Palace Museum, the official residence of the Prince of Genoa. The painting features original canvas (“prima tela”) and antique original patina, it is in excellent overall condition considering the age, use and its large scale. A formal detailed condition report and the results of the inspection with the UV lamp accompanied by photos is available on request. As well as for its exceptional quality and quite perfect state of conservation, this painting is particularly important and even more valuable both for the artist who painted it and for its absolutely exclusive provenance. Lucia painted the most prominent and powerful noble families of her time, the location of these paintings is unknown to the art market as it is extremely likely that the portraits are still kept in private collections. Furthermore, Lucia was one of the most appreciated artists of her time, so important that she was admitted as a member of the academy at a time when women were forbidden to attend these studies. In 1706, Felice Torelli...

Circle of Cornelis Dusart Dutch 1660 - 1704 Portrait of a Man Oil on panel Image size: 7¾ x 5¼ inches Giltwood frame Cornelis Dusart Cornelis ...

Sir Godfrey Kneller with studio. Let us know if you want to both at the same time and we will see what we can do. See our other accompanying portaint of Mr. Bagnel - They work tog...

Circle of Jean-Baptiste Greuze 1725 - 1805 Portrait of a Young Boy with Birdcage Oil on canvas Image size: 15½ x 12 inches Original frame J...

after HANS HOLBEIN THE YOUNGER 1497 – 1543 PORTRAIT OF WILLIAM WARHAM Oil on canvas Image size: 38 x 35 inches (89 x 71 cm) Hand made period style frame The handling of the paint in...

Extremely decorative and large oil painting from the 17th century. Restored in places.   Signed and dated Simon Peter Tileman 1658 fecit 'lower right Dimensions without frame. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Simon Peter Tilemann (1601, Lemgo – 1668, Vienna), was a German Baroque painter who was active Bremen, Kassel and Italy. According to Houbraken he first learned to paint flowers and he had a daughter who could paint flowers in watercolors. He was a good landscape painter who spent many years in Italy, but later switched to portrait painting and who painted the portrait of Ferdinand...

Charles Philips 1703 - 1747 Portrait of a King's Messenger Oil on canvas Image size: 35 ¾ x 28 inches Original gilt frame King's Messenger The job of a King's Messenger was that of a diplomatic courier, hand-carrying important and secret documents around the world. Some say that the history of the sovereigns' messengers goes back to 1199, but the first known messenger was John Norman, who in 1485 earned 4d (1½ pence) per day for carrying the state papers of Richard III. The silver greyhound on the messenger's badge dates back to Charles II. In 1660, during his exile at Breda, Netherlands, Charles II issued a declaration of amnesty to all those who had opposed him and his father. He used messengers to make his intentions known. In answer to the messenger's question "How will they know me?", Charles reached forward to a silver bowl on the table in front of him. This bowl, with four decorative greyhounds standing proud above the rim, was well known to all courtiers. Charles broke off a greyhound and gave it to the messenger as a guarantee that the message came from him. From that date, the King's Messenger always wore a silver greyhound around his neck. Later, dating from George II or III, a badge with the Royal Arms in enamel, with the greyhound suspended beneath, was worn. A George III example of the King's Messenger Badge, pre 1800, sold for over £30,000 pounds some years ago. The silver greyhounds were minted for each new reign, except the brief one of King Edward VIII. The sovereign's messengers were originally controlled by the Lord Chamberlain, being Messengers of the Great Chamber. When the Foreign Office was created in 1782, the messengers remained common to the three Secretaries of State. Charles Philips was an English artist known for painting a number of portraits and conversation pieces for noble and Royal patrons in the mid-eighteenth century. Philips was baptised in the combined parish of St Mildred, Poultry with St Mary...

English School, (circa 1600) Portrait of William Herbert, 3rd Earl of Pembroke Oil on panel, oval Image size: 29¼ x 23⅞ inches Painted wooden frame Provenance: 176, Collection of Francis Greville, 1st Earl of Warwick. The Trustees of the Lord Brooks’ Settlement, (removed from Warwick Castle). Sotheby’s, London, 22nd March 1968, lot 81. Painted onto wooden panel, this portrait shows a dark haired gentleman in profile sporting an open white shirt. On top of this garments is a richly detailed black cloak, decorated with gold thread and lined with a sumptuous crimson lining. With the red silk inside it’s all very expensive and would fall under sumptuary laws – so this is a nobleman of high degree. It’s melancholic air conforms to the contemporary popularity of this very human condition, evident in fashionable poetry and music of the period. In comparison to our own modern prejudices, melancholy was associated with creativity in this period. This portrait appeared in the earliest described list of pictures of Warwick castle dating to 1762. Compiled by collector and antiquary Sir William Musgrave ‘taken from the information of Lord & Lady Warwick’ (Add. MSS, 5726 fol. 3) is described; ‘8. Earl of Essex – an original by Zuccharo – seen in profile with black hair. Holding a black robe across his breast with his right hand.’ As tempting as it is to imagine that this is a portrait of Robert Devereux, the 2nd Earl Essex, we might take this with a pinch of salt. Its identification with this romantic and fatal Elizabethan might well have been an attempt to add romance to Warwick Castle’s walls. It doesn’t correspond all that well with Essex’s portraits around 1600 after his return from Cadiz. Notably, this picture was presumably hung not too far away from the castle’s two portraits of Queen Elizabeth I. The first, and undoubtedly the best, being the exquisite coronation portrait that was sold by Lord Brooke in the late 1970s and now hangs in the National Portrait Gallery. The second, described as being ‘a copy from the original at Ld Hydes’, has yet to resurface. The portrait eventually ended up being hung in the State Bedroom of Warwick Castle. Archival documents present one other interesting candidate. The Greville family’s earliest inventory of paintings, made in 1630 at their home Brooke House in Holborn, London, describes five portraits of identified figures. All five belonged to the courtier, politician and poet Sir Fulke Greville (1554-1628), 1st Baron Brooke, and were hung in the ‘Gallerie’ of Brooke House behind yellow curtains. One of them was described as being of ‘Lord of Pembrooke’, which is likely to have been William Herbert (1580-1630), 3rd Earl of Pembroke. William was the eldest son of Greville’s best friend’s sister Mary Sidney, and was brought up in the particularly literary and poetically orientated household which his mother had supported. Notably, the 3rd Earl was one of the figures that Shakespeare’s first folio was dedicated to in 1623. The melancholic air to the portrait corresponds to William’s own pretensions as a learned and poetic figure. The richness of the robe in the painting, sporting golden thread and a spotted black fabric, is indicative of wealth beyond that of a simple poet or actor. The portrait’s dating to around the year 1600 might have coincided with William’s father death and his own rise to the Pembroke Earldom. This period of his life too was imbued with personal sadness, as an illicit affair with a Mary Fitton had resulted in a pregnancy and eventual banishment by Elizabeth I to Wilton after a short spell in Fleet Prison. His illegitimate son died shortly after being born. Despite being a close follower of the Earl of Essex, William had side-stepped supporting Devereux in the fatal uprising against the Queen and eventually regained favour at the court of the next monarch James I. His linen shirt is edged with a delicate border of lace and his black cloak is lined on the inside with sumptuous scarlet and richly decorated on the outside with gold braid and a pattern of embroidered black spots. Despite the richness of his clothes, William Herbert has been presented in a dishevelled state of semi-undress, his shirt unlaced far down his chest with the ties lying limply over his hand, indicating that he is in a state of distracted detachment. It has been suggested that the fashion for melancholy was rooted in an increase in self-consciousness and introspective reflection during the late 16th and early 17th centuries. In contemporary literature melancholy was said to be caused by a plenitude of the melancholy humor, one of the four vital humors, which were thought to regulate the functions of the body. An abundance of the melancholia humor was associated with a heightened creativity and intellectual ability and hence melancholy was linked to the notion of genius, as reflected in the work of the Oxford scholar Robert Burton, who in his work ‘The Anatomy of Melancholy’, described the Malcontent as ‘of all others [the]… most witty, [who] causeth many times divine ravishment, and a kind of enthusiamus… which stirreth them up to be excellent Philosophers, Poets and Prophets.’ (R. Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy, London, 1621 in R. Strong, ‘Elizabethan Malady: Melancholy in Elizabethan and Jacobean Portraits’, Apollo, LXXIX, 1964). Melancholy was viewed as a highly fashionable affliction under Elizabeth I, and her successor James I, and a dejected demeanour was adopted by wealthy young men, often presenting themselves as scholars or despondent lovers, as reflected in the portraiture and literature from this period. Although the sitter in this portrait is, as yet, unidentified, it seems probable that he was a nobleman with literary or artistic ambitions, following in the same vain as such famous figures as the aristocratic poet and dramatist, Edward de Vere...

The present pair of portraits would make an exceptional addition to any collection of early American art not only because they were painted by the notable William Jennys, but also because the sitters are members of notable and influential New England families. In addition, these pendants have impeccable provenance: they have never left ownership of the decedents of the Kimball family and this is the first time they have been available for purchase. David Kimball (1766-1848) and Nancy Stacy Kimball (1774-1844) were members of historic Massachusetts families. David Kimball is a sixth-generation decedent of Richard Kimball (d. 1675) and Ursula Scott (d. 1659), who emigrated from Rattlasden, Suffolk County, England to Watertown MA around 1634. The family then relocated in 1637 to Ipswich, the city with which the family is now most strongly identified, when Richard was appointed to be a wheelwright.[1] Nancy likewise had early New England ancestry, descended from Simon Stacy and Elizabeth Clark, who were married in London in 1620.[2] Nancy Stacy was the second wife of David Kimball, and the two were married in 1799. Given this, the present pendant portraits were likely completed shortly after the marriage. David had two children by his first wife Mary Morse, who died in September of 1798. David and Nancy would have nine additional children between 1801 and 1815.[3] Most notably, the couple were parents of the Boston politician and showman Moses Kimball (1809-1895).[2][3] Moses would found the Boston Museum, an early for-profit museum and theater opened in 1841 that resembled European curiosity cabinets: the museum displayed paintings of Thomas Scully and Charles Peale alongside Chinese artwork, stuffed animals, dwarves and mermaids. Alongside these exhibits, visitors could attend the theater which held performances by gymnasts and contortionists, followed by performances of Shakespeare and Dickens.[4] This museum set the model for the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, which when founded in 1870 held a similarly diverse collection and appealed to the interests of a diverse set of visitors.[5] Moreover, some Greek antiquities from Moses Kimball's museum were eventually given to the MFA and Moses donated approximately $5,000 to the MFA's endowment upon his death.[6][7] William Jennys (1774–1859), also known as J. William Jennys, is an important American primitive portrait...

Sir Godfrey Kneller with studio, Inscribed Mr. Bagnal Lower left. Godfrey Kneller and studio , Unlined, old cleaning. Old Frame. Frame was repainted...

Half Length Portrait of Mr. Robertson Sir. Henry Raeburn ( Scottish 1756 - 1823 ) Half Length Portrait of Mr. Robertson 29x 24 Purchased, J Leger & Son,...

Appointed Portrait Painter to the Prince of Wales in Scotland in 1785, David Martin was the leading Scottish portrait painter of his generation. The artist is best known in the United States for his portrait of Benjamin Franklin, which is in the White House collection, Washington, D.C. The sitters depicted in this double portrait were the sons of the British diplomat Edward Finch-Hatton. George (1747-1823), later of Eastwell Park, Kent, is shown seated, reading an ancient charter or medieval manuscript...

Provenance: Possibly Antonio Amici Moretti, Rome, 1690 Roy Clyde Gardner, Union, Mississippi, 1970s until 2004; by whom given to: Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, 2004-2010 Lit...

Vittore Ghislandi, called Fra Galgario Provenance: Robert L. and Bertina Suida Manning, New York, ca. 1966-1996 Private Collection, USA Exhibited: “Eighteenth Century European Pai...

Ritratto del Re di Sardegna Vittorio Amedeo III di Savoia. Ambito di Giovanni Panelalbo. Ritratto di Vittorio Amedeo III di Savoia (Torino, 26 giugno 1726 – Moncalieri, 16 ottobre 1...

Portrait of Louis XV, King Of France, 18th Century follow of Pierre Mignard (1612-1694) Large circa 1720 portrait of Louis XV King Of France, oil on canvas. Excellent quality and c...

Olio su tela. Scuola italiana del XVII secolo. Il ritratto ovale presenta il busto di un gentiluomo, che indica con il pollice il bambino che si affaccia dalla sua spalla. Il dipint...

English School 18th Century Old Master Portrait Dated 1767. An intriguing painting dating to the mid 18th century bearing a label verso which is indistinct, but appears to read, “Mr...

Olio su tela. Scuola italiana del XVII secolo. Il ritratto ovale presenta il busto di un soldato in armatura, severo e truce. Il dipinto , ritelato, è presentato in cornice di inizio...

Fragment of an ancient painting portraying the doge Domenico Contarini. Painting features numerous repaintings and shortcomings. Oil on canvas technique. Relined. Doge wears a typ...

Madonna con il libro. XVII secolo. Olio su tela. Cornice in legno antico dipinto, da restaurare. Reintelato. Epoca Barocca. Interessante dipinto della scuola genovese, con caratteri...

Olio su tela. E' il ritratto del principe Tommaso Francesco di Savoia (1596 -1656), capostipite del ramo Savoia-Carignano. Nel 1620 divenne infatti, per disposizione del padre, Princ...

This mid-18th-century Dutch oil painting depicts a seated 17th-century gentleman within a room by a forge. During the 17th century, the Netherlands flourished as a hub for trade and...

Giovanni Bernardo Carbone (Genoa 1614 – Genoa 1683) - Portrait of a gentleman. 200 x 142 cm without frame, 212 x 154 cm with frame. Antique oil painting on canvas, in a wooden fram...

Olio su tela. Scuola emiliana del XVIII secolo. Grande ritratto di un nobiluomo del XVII secolo, abbigliato con un elegante manto bordato di pelliccia maculata e con la parrucca bia...

Spanish School (18th Century), A Rare Portrait of Juan Procopio de Bassecourt, count of Santa Clara, governor of the island of Cuba between December 1796 and May 1799. The lighthouse...

Oil on canvas Image size: 22 x 20 inches (22.75 x 51 cm) Pierced gilt frame This half-length portrait shows the sitter with her head and eyes looking over her shoulder, to the right. She is dressed in a delicate blue dress and blue shawl with her hair tied up away from her face. The composition of the painting is simple but effective; the woman stands out and is the undeniable focus of the viewer's attention. George Romney's artistic style is characterised by its focus on the beauty and elegance of human forms. Here, one can appreciate his ability to capture the delicacy of facial features and the soft textures of clothing. In addition, Romney has used a soft and diffuse brushstroke technique that creates a light and soft effect in the work. The dark and diffused background highlights the young woman's figure even more, creating an effect of depth and realism. It is possible that this sitter is Miss Anne Dutton. George Romney Romney was a fashionable portrait painter of late 18th-century English society. In his portraits Romney avoided delving into the character or sensibilities of the sitter. His great success with his society patrons depended largely on just this ability for dispassionate flattery. Line rather than colour dominates; the flowing rhythms and easy poses of Roman classical sculpture underlie the smooth patterns of his compositions. From 1755 to 1757 Romney was the pupil of Christopher Steele, an itinerant portrait and genre painter. Romney’s career began when he toured the northern English counties painting portraits for a few guineas each. In 1762 he went to London. His history painting The Death of General Wolfe won him an award from the Society of Arts; nonetheless he turned almost immediately to portrait painting. In 1764 he paid his first visit to Paris, where he was befriended by Joseph Vernet. Romney especially admired the work of Nicolas Le Sueur, whose use of the antique strongly appealed to him. In 1773 he went to Italy for two years, where he studied Raphael’s Stanze frescoes in Rome, Titian’s paintings...

Oil on oak panel Image size: 14 1/4 x 11 3/4 inches (36 x 30 cm) Period style frame This portrait shows Chaucer with a string of beads in one hand and a writing implement in the other. The Arms in the top left of the picture are the Arms of Chaucer, featuring a per pale argent and gules, a bend counterchanged. This painting appears to derive, like all other portraits of Chaucer, from an illustration in an early fifteenth-century manuscript, Hoccleve's De Regimine Principum. Here Hoccleve included one portrait of Chaucer, showing him with an inkhorn around his neck and holding a rosary in one hand. Since it is likely that Hoccleve had met Chaucer, many scholars believe this could be the most genuine representation of the English writer with all other depictions being seemingly based on it. In almost all portraits of Chaucer, including this one, the poet is shown wearing a pendant attached to his vest. This item is often considered to be a penner, included in the artworks as a sign of the general occupation of a writer. Whilst the pendant is generally accepted as a case for a writing instrument, possibly with equal plausibility, it has also been suggested that the item is an ampulla, a small lead vial containing water and the blood of St. Thomas Becket...

This lovely British 18th century Old Master portrait oil painting is attributed to the manner of Thomas Beach. The sitter is Silvestra Monypenny when she was about 12. She is the on...

This early to mid-17th-century oil on panel depicts Maurice of Nassau (1567-1625), Prince of Orange. It’s a bust-length portrait, presented in a feigned oval, after a full length by ...

Paul van Somer, circle of (1576, Antwerp - 1621, London) Portrait of a lady in a lace collar. Oil on panel. 64 x 49.5 cm. Provenance Private collection, Switzerland The present...

Head Portrait of a Man with Beard Flemish/ Dutch School, circa 1580-1620 period circle of Adriaen Thomasz. Key (Dutch, 1544, Antwerp – after 1589) oil on canvas, framed framed: 20 x ...

Circle of Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (Fuendetodos 1746-1828 Bordeaux) Portrait of a María del Rosario Fernandéz, called 'La Tirana' (1755-1803). OIl on canvas. 76.5 x 57.2 c...

A stylish portrait of a fashionable aristocrat dating to the late 18th century. Her hair is bedecked with pearls and worn in a style popular in the 1790’s. Her apple green gown is d...

École Française du XVIIIe. « Portrait d’un gentilhomme en uniforme ». Cadre rond en bois doré à d’époque Restauration à motifs de perles. Hors tout H.54 L.50.

Olio su tela. Ritratto diAustria Maria Teresa d'Asburgo (1717 - 1780), che nel 1740 divenne la prima (nonché unica) donna della Casa d'Austria a ereditare il governo dei vasti possed...

French painter (18th century) - Portrait of a lady. 43 x 35 cm without frame, 69 x 59 cm with frame. Oil on canvas, in carved and gilded wooden frame. - Inscription on the back. ...

In this touching composition a young woman has been depicted wearing a dark coloured dress, draped at the bodice with a gauzy silk scarf and with pearls and large diamonds, over a wh...