18th Century Portrait Paintings

French School, Portrait of a Young Lady, perhaps an actress Oval Louis XIV sculpted and gilded frame French Art, Roccoco Art The oval portrait of a young woman measures 61 by 50,5 cm canvas sight size and its 18th century oak carved and gilded frame...

Painting oil on canvas measuring 92 x 75 cm without frame and 102 x 87 cm with frame depicting a rich lady of the French school of the first half of the 18th century. In its formal ...

Family Portrait Of Mrs Spencer & Children, 18th Century circle of William BEECHEY (1753-1839) Huge 18th Century English School portrait of a lady trad...

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...

Portrait Circle of Sir Godfrey Kneller Bt. (British, 1646-1723) of Katharine, wife of Thomas, 6th Earl of Westmorland, oil on canvas late 17th early 18th century in date. The sitter Katharine is facing dexter and is wearing a cream dress, blue and gold cloak and lace mantilla...

Oil on canvas Image size: 28 3/4 x 24 inches (73 x 61 cm) Contemporary style gilt frame This portrait is an evocative example of Devis' Regency period portraiture, featuring a pleasant looking young girl holding a book in an outdoor setting. Working with a darker palette, a strongly accented diagonal recession, and dramatic contrasts of light and shadow, Devis heightens the girl's three-dimensional physical presence in the foreground of the composition. The Artist  Arthur William Devis (10 August 1762 – 11 February 1822) was an English painter of history paintings and portraits. He painted portraits and historical subjects, sixty-five of which he exhibited (1779–1821) at the Royal Academy. Among his more famous works are a depiction of the Death of Nelson and a posthumous portrait of Nelson. Devis was born in London, the nineteenth child of the artist Arthur Devis and his wife Elizabeth Faulkner. Devis was the younger brother of the painter Thomas Anthony Devis (1757–1810) and of the schoolmistress and grammarian Ellin Devis (1746–1820), teacher, among others, of author of Maria Edgeworth and Frances Burney (later novelist Madame d'Arblay). He followed his elder brother Thomas Anthony in becoming a pupil at the Royal Academy Schools in 1774 and like his brother exhibited at the Free Society of Artists, of which in 1768 their father had become president, and at the Royal Academy. Early on he came to the notice of Sir Joshua Reynolds. He was appointed draughtsman on the British East India Company's packet Antelope in a voyage in 1783, under Captain Henry Wilson. In her he was injured in an encounter with Papuans near the Schouten Islands and was then wrecked on the Pelew Islands before proceeding to Canton and thence to Bengal. During his voyages, the artist received arrow wounds, one of which inflicted permanent injury on his lower jaw. During his time in Bengal, he painted a portrait of Sir William Jones, at the time a judge in Fort William. The painting now hangs at the British Library. He was back in London by 1795 and is recorded on 21 July 1797 as living at 27 George Street, Hanover Square, where he was insured by the Sun Assurance Office. He is noted for his involvement in the creation of the posthumous cult of Horatio Nelson. As she returned from Trafalgar, Devis went out to meet HMS Victory and was present on board the ship during the autopsy of Nelson's body conducted by Dr Beatty, the ship's surgeon. With the help of sketches he took at that time, he painted a heroic Death of Nelson, which proved a sensation. Devis also painted Dr Beatty, and was commissioned by him to produce a half-length painting of Nelson as vice-admiral, which he lent to Emma Hamilton (who later lost it in an accident whilst travelling). Either the original or a copy of this portrait was exhibited at the Royal Academy two years after the Battle and many copies were made of it. Lord Howe owned one, and another ended up in the collection of the National Maritime Museum. It also appeared as an engraving in Beatty's published account of Nelson's death. Other work includes a portrait of King George III on horseback, and a range of portraits of admirals and generals, along with historical subjects, such as the Babington Plot and the signing of the Magna Carta...

Portrait Of A Lady In A Lace Cap & Ruff, 17th Century 1640 Dutch School 17th Century Dutch School portrait of a young lady wearing a lace cap and ruff, oil on panel. Excellent qual...

Attributed to Gainsborough Dupont (1754 - 1797, British) Portrait of Owen Ormsby, bust-length, in a brown coat, with slightly later inscription identifying the sitter oil on canvas 2...

English School, circa 1780’s Circle of George Romney (1734-1802) oil painting on canvas, framed framed: 36 x 30 inches canvas: 30 x 25 inches private collectio...

Up for sale is a phenomenal Antique “Dutch School” original oil painting on canvas, depicting a genre scene. "By A. Van Ostade" - written on the back of the canvas (Ostade was a Du...

Saint John the Baptist & Saint Benedict, 18th Century Diptych after lost work by Bartolomeo Montagna (1450-1523) Large 18th Century Italian Old Master depiction of Saint John the B...

Benedetto Luti (Florence, Italy, 1666 - Rome, Italy, 1724) Title: Head of a Girl Medium: Oil pastel on canvas Dimensions: without frame 28 x 23.5 cm - with frame 38.5 x 33.5 cm Orig...

Portrait Of Miss Jones of Fonman Castle, Wales, circa 1730 by ENOCH SEEMAN (1689-1744) Large 18th century three quarter length portrait of Miss Jones of Fonmon Castle, Wales, oil o...

Portrait of a Lady with carnations By Jean Ranc (Montpellier 1674 - Madrid 1735), circa 1700 Oil on canvas in oval shape, Dimensions: h. 35.82, w. 28.34 in. Period Louis XIV giltwood and carved frame with laurel leaves. Framed dimensions: h. 42.52 in, w. 33.85 in. Provenance: Collection of the Marquis de Bailleul at the Château d'Angerville-Bailleul (before 1942). To be included in the catalog raisonné of the artist by Stephane Perreau Important portrait of a young woman depicted half-length turned three-quarters, her face looking at the viewer. Dressed in a brick red velvet dress, an elegant blue scarf envelops her figure. Hair styled “a la Fontange”, her powdered hair is raised and tied at the back with a red ribbon, several curly locks escape from her bun and fall on her back and shoulders. The perfectly oval face with regular features dominated by her straight nose is softened by her gray eyes with slightly lowered lids. The red tinged skin tones on the cheeks and cheekbones color the face and make the portrait come alive. The young woman is portrayed standing near a pot of carnations. Her strongly lighted figure stands out against an architectural background of columns. The artist's palette is made of contrasts opposing warm to cold hues. The icy electric blue contrasts with the fiery brick red, the hair powdered with white accentuates even more the flush of the cheeks. The left arm bent at the elbow, extending the open hand with slightly bent fingers in the foreground brings depth to the composition. Our portrait, an interesting testimony in the corpus of works of the painter, is part of his youthful period, around 1700-1705. The former belonging of this portrait to the Marquis de Bailleul reinforces the remarkable character of our painting. The portrait has been examined by Stéphane Perreau, specialist of Jean Ranc and will be included in the catalog raisonné currently being written, under number P. 43. The notice edited by Mr Perreau is below: "Painted around 1700-1705, this portrait of a woman is directly inherited from Hyacinthe Rigaud, the master of Jean Ranc (the hand turned over the front, in a watch...

Benedetto Luti (Florence, Italy, 1666 - Rome, Italy, 1724) Title: Head of a Girl Medium: Oil pastel on canvas Dimensions: without frame 28 x 23.5 cm - with frame 38.5 x 33.5 cm Orig...

Portrait Of John Parker, 1st Lord Boringdon (1735-1788), 18th century School of Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792) Large 18th portrait of John Parker, 1st Lord Boringdon, oil on canvas. E...

The painting (with a Salvador Rosa-style gilded frame 88 x 116 cm) depicts a group of four children who are playing outside on a swinging seesaw; we are probably dealing with a prank, as can be seen by the satisfied expression of the child on the right at the expense of the one in the foreground, who seems to be supported by the others, perhaps because of the fear felt. They are dressed in the same way, with black or brown ankle boots and a kind of double-breasted jumpsuit with a rich lace collar reminiscent of the jabots of dames, blue for the one in the foreground, brick-colored for the other three. Children also look alike in the hair, typical of the period, and features, suggesting a kinship relationship. We find the same subject, for example, in Johann Zoffany...

Italian painting of Alphonsus Liguori in French Neo-Gothic Frame Italian and French, Late 18th and 19th Century Frame: Height 61cm, width 39cm, depth 6cm Panel: Height 28cm, width 22...

Portrait Of A Lady, Believed to be Miss Craigie, 18th Century circle of Allan RAMSAY (1713-1784) Fine large 18th century portrait of a Lady in a. white dress, believed to be a Mi...

Dominicus van der Smissen Early 18th Century Portrait of Conrad Friedrich Hurlebusch Oil on canvas Image size: 20½ x 16¼ inches Period gilt frame This is a portrait of Conrad Friedrich Hurlebusch, composer, Kapellmeister and organist, whom Van der Smissen most probably portrayed during his stay in Hamburg, Brunswick or Amsterdam. The identification is based on the reproduction of the portrait which was engraved by Pieter Anthony Wakkerdak (1740- 1774). Van der Smissen has reduced the face of the sitters to an egg-shaped oval in three-quarter view, applying diminution to one half of the figure’s torso, which is farther away from the viewer. This partial side view, with the head turned to look at the viewer over the shoulder, creates spatial depth and brings the figure to life by avoiding the stiffness of a frontal depiction. Because the artist chose to highlight the figure from above, a distinct shadow is cast under the tip of the nose, in the shape of a triangle. This is an often recurring and almost ‘signature’-like feature in Van der Smissen’s oeuvre. Hurlebusch's garments are of a very high quality and serve to reflect the sitter’s wealth, status and elegance. During this period, gentlemen often shaved their heads in order to facilitate the wearing of a wig, which wouldbe worn with a suit. Here Hurlebusch has been depicted in a luxurious turban-like cap lined with lynx fur, a highly fashionable and expensive material at the time. Over his shirt, he wears a velvet fur-lined gown adorned with decorative clasps fashioned from silver braid. The elegant informality of his appearance can be seen in his unbuttoned shirt and the unfastened black ribbon hanging from his button hole, which has been artfully arranged into a fluttering drape by the portraitist. The Sitter Hurlebusch was born in Brunswick, Germany. He received the first instructions in his field from his father Heinrich Lorenz Hurlebusch, who was also a musician. As an organ virtuoso, he toured Europe, visiting Vienna, Munich and Italy. From 1723 to 1725 he was Kapellmeister in Stockholm; later he became Kapellmeister in Bayreuth and Brunswick, and lived in Hamburg from 1727 to 1742, where he had contact with fellow composers Johann Mattheson and Georg Philipp Telemann. He made his living composing, performing and teaching. In 1735 and 1736, he is believed to have visited Johann Sebastian Bach in Leipzig, who promoted Hurlebusch’s compositions as the local seller...

Circle of Robert Byng British, (1666-1720) Girl with Orange Oil on canvas Image size: 29 inches x 24 inches Size including frame: 36 inches x 31 inc...

Portrait Of A Lady Holding A Flue, 18th Century French School Large 18th century French School portrait of a lady holding a flute, oil on canvas. Magnificent and unusual portrait ...

Portrait Of William Beekman Of New York, 18th Century American School Large 18th Century American School portrait of a William Beekman of New York, oil on canvas. Excellent qualit...

Woman Washing Clothes In The River, 17th Century circle of Francesco GUARDI (1712-1793) Fine large Italian Old Master landscape view of figures in a ...

Oil on Canvas. Central European school of the 18th century. The distinguished lady, flaunting a dress embellished with bows and lace, is seated at her desk and holding a letter; in t...

Jeune Femme au Manchon Entourage de Charles-André van Loo (1705–1765) Huile sur toile – Dimensions : 32 x 41 cm Cadre ancien en bois sculpté et doré Ce délicat portrait d’une jeune ...

Up for sale is the original antique 17th/18th-century oil painting on canvas depicting a contemplative scene featuring a man sitting indoors. He is dressed in period clothing, includ...

An important authenticated & documented 18th century portrait by John Russell R A (1745-1809), England, signed & dated 1789. This rather charming & sensitive portrait of a young girl...

A charming study of a determined looking woman seated on a bench surrounded by woven baskets. One hand propped on her him and another through the handle of her basket, she looks to the right with an intense stare. The artist depicts her on a street lined with tall continental buildings on a summer's day. Painted in a style influenced by 18th century artist...

After the Hunt Jan Josef Horemans the Younger Antwerp 1714 – 1790 Flemish School Signature: Attributed to Jan Josef the Younger Horemans Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions: Size incl...

This painting titled "Mme de Noirmont" is an oil on canvas work from the studio of Nicolas de Largilliere, one of the most prolific and esteemed French portrait painters of the 18th ...

Attributed to Pietro Antonio Rotari (1707 - 1762), Italian painter of the Rococo era. His portraits, mostly of women, are renowned for being beautiful and realistic. The details and ...

French School, late 18th century, circle of Jean-Baptiste Greuze (1725–1805) Young Girl with a Basket of Fruit Oil on canvas, preparatory work, Unsigned 39 x 31 cm Provenance: Pri...

Work on canvas

Clan Murray, Coat Of Arms, Duke Of Atholl, 18th Century Scottish School Large 18th Century Scottish Clan Murray Coats of Arms, oil on canvas. The shield bearing allegiance to the c...

Oil Painting Stye of Benjamin Marshall "The Hobby Horse" 1768 -1835 painter of sporting subjects especially racing scenes. This fine late Regency portrait is in his slightly caricatu...

Oil painting on canvas. Venetian school of the eighteenth century. The portrait proposes the figure of a young woman wearing an everyday dress, but embellished with spotted fur...

Oil on canvas Image size: 20 x 24 inches (51 x 61 cm) Period gilt frame This is a half-length portrait of a gentleman wearing a emerald coat and intricately designed waistcoat, dat...

Beautiful pastel in an oval shape. It depicts a young noblewoman portrayed three-quarter-length with her little dog in her arms. Seated in a gilded armchair, she is draped in a backg...

Francesco Fedeli (Venice, 1738 - 1805) called “Il Maggiotto “ great Italian painter and physicist. The “𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗴𝗵𝗲” ( Craftsman fixing chairs ) is taken from one of...

18th-19th C. Portrait Painting After Petrus Staverenus depicting man with bottle Oil on canvas No visible signature Wax seal on verso 11" x 14"

French school late 18th Century Portrait of a young man oil on metal 10.2 x 7.7 cm Framed under glass : 24.4 x 21.8 cm This small portrait painting, quite original in its technique...

Venetian master (18th century) - Mask of Colombina. 161 x 68 cm without frame, 169.5 x 76.5 cm with frame. Antique oil painting on canvas, in a white lacquered wooden frame (not si...

Portrait Of William Hogarth (1697-1764) , 18th Century English School, Possibly a Self Portrait Large 18th century English School portrait of painter and satirist William Hogarth, ...

John Westbrooke Chandler 1763- 1807 Oil on canvas Image size: 30 x 25 inches (76 x 63.5 cm) Original gilt swept frame This portrait is marked by its loose brushwork, which creates a...

This superb late 18th century portrait oil painting is attributed to noted Scottish artist Alexander Nasmyth. Painted circa 1790 the sitter is of the Wagstaff family, either Thomas o...

Portrait of a well-to-do gentleman in pastel on parchment. Signed left: Marteau L. 1760. French School, possibly by Louis Marteau (1715 – 1804) In a gilded 19th century frame. Dimen...

Bust portrait of two young girls. Colour engraving in crayon manner after François-André Vincent. each 50.8 x 37.4 cm. Circa 1788, Leymarie 662, IFF 6, 74. This sheet is a typical ex...

ENOCH SEEMAN (circle of) PORTRAIT OF SIR FRANCIS SEYMOUR AS A BOY A very fine 18th century portrait of Sir Francis Seymour as a boy,oil on canvas housed in a gilt frame, circle of Enoch Seeman The size of the painting is 49 x 39.5cm (19¼ x 15½ in.) whilst overall the size is 65 cm x 56 cm The painting is in very good condition, the Canvas has been relined, and recently cleaned. Provenance: Anonymous sale, Christie's, 19 January 1945, lot 34 Anonymous sale, Crewkerne, Somerset, 24 April 2009, lot 1947 SIR FRANCIS SEYMOUR Francis Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Trowbridge (c. 1590 – 12 July 1664), of Marlborough Castle and Savernake Park in Wiltshire, was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1621 and 1641 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Seymour of Trowbridge. He supported the Royalist cause during the English Civil War. In June 1611 he was accused of abetting the escape of his brother William Seymour and his wife Arabella Stuart, but protested his innocence. He was knighted by King James I at Royston on 23 October 1613. In 1612 was settled on him by his grandfather the manor of "Puriton with Downend" in Somerset, formerly one of the many possessions of his great-grandfather the 1st Duke of Somerset. In June 1642, Seymour signed the declaration that the king had no intention of war. He followed the King to York, offering to raise twenty horse in his cause, and Parliament accordingly declared him a delinquent. In autumn 1642 he went with his brother, the Marquis of Hertford, into the Westcountry to organise the royalist forces and suppress the parliamentary militia. He crossed the Bristol Channel...

I have great pleasure in offering for sale this beautiful portrait, by Nathaniel Hone, the elder. 18th century. The painting is of Ann Anderson, wife...

This small portrait, from an important Florentine collection, (unframed 14x10 cm.) is signed and dated on the lower edge "Io(hannes) Baptista Scarlattius Rondinelli Fecit Anno 1754."...

Oil on canvas Image size: 30 x 25 inches (76 x 63.5 cm) Hand carved gilt frame This is a charming 18th century portrait of a young boy, sporting a golden child's two-piece with a fl...

Oil on canvas Image size: 17 x 23 1/2 inches (43 x 60 cm) Contemporary William Kent hand made frame

Portrait of James Stanley (1750 - 1810), circa 1775-1778, full-length, wearing a red coat and breeches and a gold embroidered waistcoat, hold...

A late 17th/early 18th century Flemish painting measuring 90 x 70 cm without frame and 100 x 80 cm with a contemporary frame. An important characteristic of this painting is its str...

Prize Bulls, Farmer & Owner, 18th Century Early French School Oil On Panel Fine 18th century French School prize bull scene with the farmer and owner, oil on panel. Very early prize bull scene with a pair of bulls accompanied by their owner and the farmer. Excellent detail with influences of Paulus Potter...

James Northcote Portrait of a Gentleman Commoner at Oxford Oil on canvas Image size: 30 x 25 inches (76 x 63.5 cm) Original gilt frame This painting is a comparatively rare example ...

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...

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...

18th Century French Rococò Painting An oil on panel painting attributed to the great French artist of the eighth century, Jean Raoux (Montpellier, 10 June 1677 - Paris, 10 February...