The Limner Company

Our portrait miniature by Isaac Oliver (c.1565-1617) of Lady Dorothy Sidney (née Percy) (c.1598-1659), later Countess of Leicester, gracing the London Art Week poster!

2 days to go until our LAW selling exhibition opens at Guy Peppiatt Fine Art Gallery, 6 Mason’s Yard, London. Opening times: 10am - 5pm Mon to Fri, 11am - 5pm Sat and Sun.

We’re looking forward to unveiling this miniature and many more on Friday!

We are swooning over this special portrait by Isaac Oliver circa 1615 of a courtier. The white, slashed doublet with silver embroidery and contemporary enamelled frame are both works of art in themselves. We are transported back to the court of James I/VI…for sale with The Limner Company and on show at 6 Masons Yard, Mayfair, London (next to White Cube) - from this coming Friday 28th June. DM for more information.

ISAAC OLIVER (c.1565-1617)
Portrait miniature of a Nobleman wearing a white doublet with embroidery and slashes, and a
lace-edged rebato collar; blue background with gold border; c.1615
Watercolour on vellum, laid down on card
Contemporary gold locket frame (lid missing) with white and gold enamel border, the reverse with guilloché
enamel
Oval, 2 in (51mm) high

New to the website and the focus of this week’s : a portrait miniature of an elderly Gentleman, possibly scholar Sir Henry Savile (1549-1622), studio of John Hoskins the Elder (c.1590-1664). £10,500

In the mid-to-late sixteenth century, what has been called ‘the citizen portrait’ emerged - a new genre of portraiture emerged depicting merchants, lawyers, physicians, scholars, their wives and families. These new patrons could be described as middle class, but they were almost all significantly wealthy or notable figures.

Many of the male sitters of the professional class wear black. Records show such men owned some garments of other colours, but the weight of evidence from portraiture suggests black was the most widely worn. It was practical (for not showing dirt) while being appropriately sober for business. Black was also considered a virtuous and graceful colour, and praised as such in the mid-sixteenth-century publication The Courtier (by Baldassare Castiglione (1478–1529), 1528, published in English in 1561). Furthermore, it was expensive and indicated the sitter’s wealth - the dying process to achieve true black was particularly time consuming, and therefore costly. For these reasons, courtiers and nobles too might wear black, distinguishing themselves from the ‘middling sort’ with luxurious fabrics and ornament. The wealthiest could choose a silk, satin, velvet or black cloth woven with silver or gilt threads. Accessories - for which it made the perfect foil - might include embroidery, fine white lace ruffs and cuffs, gold or pearl jewellery, metal aglets and buttons etc.

2 1/8 in. (54 mm)

A rare and important miniature discovery which Emma helped identify is coming up for auction at Roseberys London on 9th July. This portrait miniature is by Charles Willson Peale (American 1741-1827) and depicts George Washington (1732-1799) as Commander in Chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, a decade before he would become the first President of the United States. View online via link in story.

From the catalogue note:

Here Washington is depicted Renowned American portraitist Charles Willson Peale painted Washington several times throughout the latter’s illustrious military and political life, and the present miniature appears to be derived from an initial sitting in 1779, when the Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania commissioned Peale to paint a portrait of Washington commemorating the General’s recent victories at the Battles of Trenton (1776) and Princeton (1777). The initial, full-length portrait that resulted from this sitting is now in the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts [1943.16.2]. Peale went on to paint several more versions of his popular portrait, both in oil and in miniature, most of which are now held in museum collections. […]

Maryland-born artist Charles Willson Peale […] spent several years in London, studying with American-born artist Benjamin West, PRA (1738-1820). It was in Britain that Peale became trained in the art of painting portrait miniatures, and he continued to import his supplies from Britain even after his return to the United States.

Oval, 4.1 cm high

Thank you for inviting us to view the exhibition last night. Thrilled to see miniatures are integral to the display, as they were in Tudor courtship! Miniatures were also exchanged between Henry’s children and his six wives.

Many of the miniatures included are rarely seen in public and we would highly recommend seeing this exhibition – a brilliant collection of art and artefacts.

1) Katherine of Aragon, about 1526, Workshop of the Horenbout family – His Grace, The Duke of Buccleuch & Queensberry, KBE, KT

2) Possibly of Anne Boleyn, about 1526, Horenbout family workshop – His Grace, The Duke of Buccleuch & Queensberry, KBE, KT. Displayed alongside a lead portrait medal of Anne (1534) – the only image of Anne which has never been questioned.

3) Jane Seymour, about 1536, Horenbout family workshop – Sudeley Castle

4) Anne of Cleves, 1539, Hans Holbein the Younger – Victoria and Albert Museum

5) Probably Katherine Howard, about 1540, Hans Holbein the Younger - His Grace, The Duke of Buccleuch & Queensberry, KBE, KT

6) Katherine Parr, about 1544, Horenbout family workshop – Sudeley Castle

💛New to our website 💛: A golden miniature 🌟. This portrait of a Gentleman comes from a follower of the Dutch Painter, Karel Dujardin, and is painted on a surface of gold. This is now for sale for £2500 on the Limner Company website.
It bears a close resemblance to Dujardin’s self portrait of 1662, now in the collection of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Better known for his scenes of simple, bucolic life, Dujardin was also a portraitist, receiving commissions from elite
patrons in Amsterdam.
Metals like copper as a support for oil allowed artists to add an incredible amount of detail to what they were painting. Several Dutch artists painted portraits using a metal (usually copper) support for oil – including Frans van Mieris (1635-81) and possibly Rembrandt. However, using gold was a less common practice, and creates a unique miniature, in this case.
The sitter of the portrait is a man of fashion and taste – his expensive black doublet slashed to reveal a fine, lawn shirt. It is difficult to believe that the (currently unknown) artist was not aware of Dujardin’s self-portrait, where he wears
almost identical dress, has the same hairstyle and facial hair.

New to the website and Brilliant in Blue 💙: a recently re-attributed portrait of an unknown gentleman, by Jean André Rouquet (1701-1758), on sale for £2,500.

Jean André Rouquet had a fascinating life, that ended up in incarceration in the Charenton. He was a Swiss enamellist, born in Geneva. At the age of 21 he moved to London, where he would remain for 30 years, as his career progressed. During this time, he became a fierce advocate for the works of William Hogarth, and published explanations of his works in French.

Rouquet’s 1775 book, L’État des Arts en Angleterre, was quoted by Diderot in his 1751-1772 Encyclopédie under the entry for enamel. Aside from this success, he was able to exhibit five enamels at the Adademié in 1753, and was given an apartment above the Louvre. In 1754, he was made a member of the Académie Royale de la Peinture.

His talent is expressed in this miniature, made using enamel, an extremely difficult thing to do. Despite this difficulty, he has been able to capture a brilliant blue colour, that stands out in the miniature.

Oval, 43mm high.

New blog alert 📝! To celebrate this Fashion Friday, we’re moving away from clothes and on to hair. This month’s blog, uploaded this week, takes us through a history of fashions in hair that can be seen in The Limner Company’s very own miniatures, past and present. Here are a few that are mentioned:

1.John Smart (1741-1811), Portrait of A Lady, 1785

This lovely lady with pink hair exemplifies the popular 18th century trend of powdering one’s hair or wig. Here, she has gone with a brilliant pink to powder her hair, as women were less likely to sport wigs at this time. These powders could be scented, and infused with natural oils, which would in turn deter lice. John Smart was the son of a peruke, or wig, maker. It is not surprising that his depictions of hair are so brilliant, such as in this example.

Oval, 54mm high.

Sold through The Limner Company.

2.Isaac Oliver (c.1565-1617), Portrait of A Nobleman, 1610s.

Turning back to the 17th century, this nobleman, recently sold, wears his hair with a ‘lovelock’, which can be seen over his left shoulder. These longer pieces of hair were intended to signal that the wearer was in a committed relationship. They were a popular fashion at the time in which this miniature was painted, and can be found in other examples from the likes of Hilliard and Oliver.

Oval, 41mm high.

3.Matthew Snelling (1621-1678), Portrait of King Charles II, c.1665.

This miniature, to be exhibited in our London Art Week show, shows a fashion in hair that developed at the end of the 17th century. As King Charles II began to grey, he decided that a wig was the way forward. From this point onwards, men such as Samuel Pepys began to wear wigs, like this one, and the style gained more popularity in England. It is possible that he was wearing such a wig in this portrait, giving him his iconic, dark, and wavy hair.

Oval, 80mm high.

Preparations are well underway for this year’s London Art Week, when we will be kindly hosted by Guy Peppiatt Fine Art at their Mason’s Yard gallery in St James’s, London.

🗓️28 June - 5 July
🕣10am - 5pm Mon to Fri, 11am - 5pm Sat and Sun.
📍6 Mason’s Yard, London, SW1Y 6BU.
(Free entry, no booking required.)

We will be exhibiting over 50 miniatures from 17th – 19th centuries. We’re particularly looking forward to unveiling some rare early works, including this large-scale drawing by Richard Gibson (c.1605-1690).

New to the website: The young Prince who started the first ever Oktoberfest 🍻. A portrait of King Ludwig I of Bavaria, as crown prince (1786-1868), 1815, by Caspar Gerhard Klotz (1774-1847).
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Throughout his reign as both Crown Prince and King of Bavaria, Ludwig saw many changes and developments, including the introduction of a yearly Oktoberfest, following the extravagant celebrations of his marriage in 1810. It was also Ludwig who had allowed breweries to serve beer directly, prompting the opening of the beer halls and gardens of Munich.
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Ludwig was responsible for commissioning many of the buildings of cultural importance in Munich today. Out of these, the New and Old Pinakothek in Munich stand out. He also opened the Glyptotek, the first public museum in Europe.
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Caspar Gerhard Klotz painted miniatures of other members of european nobility and royalty, including a portrait of Princess Charlotte (1770-1840), held in the Royal Collection. At this point in time, Klotz had returned to living in Germany, in Frankfurt. He would remain in Germany until his death in 1847, in Munich.
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Oval, 45mm.
£1,100
Image credits for image 4: Detail from Heinrich Adam, The Horse Race at the First Oktoberfest, 1823.
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The Limner Company are on a group outing to the Angelica Kauffman symposium at the organised with the today.

Because everything always comes back to miniatures (with us), here are some paintings by Kauffman with minis in them!

They include a wonderful pair depicting Alexander Gordon, 4th Duke of Gordon, and his wife, Jane Maxwell, Duchess of Gordon, with miniature portraits of each other. Both are in the Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

Image credits:
1. Angelica Kauffmann, Lady Elizabeth Christiana Hervey, Lady Elizabeth Foster, later Duchess of Devonshire (1759-1824), Ickworth, Nation Trust NT 851738.
2-3. Angelica Kauffman, Jane Maxwell, Duchess of Gordon, about 1749-1812, c.1772, National Portrait Gallery, Scotland, PG2786.
4-5. Angelica Kauffman, Alexander Gordon, 4th Duke of Gordon, 1743 - 1827, 1774, National Portrait Gallery, Scotland, PG2787.
6. Professor Chi-chi Nwanoku CBE speaking on a portrait miniature of Ignatius Sancho after Gainsborough

We were THRILLED when Emma was invited to go on podcast (our favourite podcast) following the discovery. The episode is OUT TODAY - listen/download via link. https://shows.acast.com/not-just-the-tudors/episodes/a-tudor-mystery-the-girl-who-could-be-queen

MAJOR NEW DISCOVERY! 400-year-old portrait identified for the first time by Emma Rutherford and Dr Elizabeth Goldring. Hear the full story on my podcast, Not Just the Tudors.

The Hilliard discovery is in the BBC News today! Congratulations again to Emma and Elizabeth Goldring! Follow link below to read story.

Rare portrait of 'England’s lost queen' discovered by Warwick historians Art historians at the University of Warwick find a rare painting of Lady Arbella Stuart.

Recently sold: this stunning portrait miniature of a Jacobean nobleman, by Isaac Oliver (c.1565-1617), which gives us multiple insights into the fashions of the Jacobean Court.

Our nobleman wears a ‘lovelock’ in his hair, which falls down towards his shoulder. This would have been used to symbolise the sitter’s loyalty to a loved one. And, though it may look black now, the gem set into his earring would have once been a diamond painted in silver, that has since oxidised and turned to the colour it is today. His embroidered sash bears a resemblance to that worn by an unknown gentleman in a miniature sold at Christie’s in 2019, and to the larger sash worn by Henry, Prince of Wales, in a miniature in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge. Sashes like this were commonly used to identify positions in the military, so it is possible that our sitter was also a military man.

In contrast, the gold that was used to paint the Impresara to the sitter’s right is still very visible, and has not lost its bright colour, either in the text or the impressive sunburst that accompanies it. The translation fo the inscription, ‘I will brighten’, explains why a sunburst has been drawn alongside it. An impresa like this would have traditionally been related to the sitter, however, as he remains unidentified, in this case we do not know in which way this related.

Isaac Oliver was trained by Nicolas Hilliard (1547-1619), one of the finest limners of his time. This connection may have been part of the reason that this miniature was attributed to HIlliard in the past. Oliver was related to Marcus Gheeraerts (1561-1636), portraitist at the Tudor court, through marriage, and at this point in his carrer was limner to Anne of Denmark. It is not surprising, then, that he was aware of and painting so many prominent fashions of the court. For a YouTube video which featured this miniature in an exhibition see ‘Projecting Your Image | Elizabethan & Jacobean Portraiture’ (final images 3&4)

New to the website: this portrait miniature, dated 1806, is exemplary of a George Engleheart’s later style (1750-1829). £4,000

By this time, Engleheart had enjoyed a decades-long and illustrious career, the activities of which he recorded himself in a fee book, which survives today. His experience is evident here in the expert skill with which he records in detail the sitter’s dark coat and white cravat, without distracting from the beautifully rendered features of his face. His bushy eyebrows are especially prominent and contrast to the grey hair upon his head, possibly powdered.

The reverse of the frame of this miniature features elaborate hairwork: a continuous plait of hair surrounding an intricate design of locks in the centre, seemingly held with a seed pearl clasp. Hairwork like this was typical of the period and is often seen with Engleheart’s miniatures. The intention behind what may seem today to be an odd form of decoration, would have been to memorialise a family member, possibly even the sitter of the miniature, through an enduring part of their person.

Oval, 84 mm

Recently sold: Portrait of Charles Middleton, by Jeremiah Meyer (1735-89). This fine example of a portrait miniature by Anglo-German miniaturist and Royal Academy Member Jeremiah Meyer, has links to the story of the abolitionist movement in 18th century Britain.

The sitter of this miniature is Charles Middleton, a naval officer and abolitionist. He and his wife, Margaret, Lady Middleton were both active anti-abolitionists and the owners of Barham Court, one of the focal points of the abolitionist movement in the period. This was a common visiting place for William Wilberforce, who became good friends with Margaret.

A portrait miniature of Margaret, also by Jeremiah Meyer, can be found in the National Portrait Gallery. She was just as active as Charles in her views, and had also supported other abolitionists like James Ramsay. Ramsay had worked with Charles as a surgeon in the navy, and lived with them at Barham Court for some time.

Charles had previously been a naval officer but had become disillusioned with the navy in 1790. It was from then that his evangelical and political beliefs pushed him to embark on his mission to campaign for abolition. The two portraits are not companions, but tell the story of a couple who played a role in beginning the long process of ending the slave trade within Britain.

48mm (1.89in.) high.

This portrait miniature is by Jean-Baptiste Jacques Augustin (1759-1832), who is considered - alongside Jean-Baptiste Isbaey (1767-1855) - one of the greatest French miniaturists of the late 18th/ early 19th centuries. Price on request.

Anne Ferdinand de Berthier (1782-1864), le comte de Bertier de Sauvigny, was born with considerable political pedigree and himself became an influential political figure in 19th-century France. A child of the Revolution, his early years were brutal: his grandfather (the Controller-General of Finances under Louis XVI) had the ignominious distinction of being the first recorded person to have been lynched à la lanterne (from a lamppost), and his father (Intendant of Paris) was also hanged shortly afterwards, confronted with his father-in-law’s severed head before he met his own brutal end.

De Sauvigny was only 7 years old when these atrocities occurred. He emigrated and some years later (presumably, considering his age) was serving in the counter-revolutionary Armée des Émigrés. He would later serve as a colonel under Louis Antoine of France, Duke of Angoulême (1775-1844) in the prince’s 1823 expedition to restore the Spanish king’s absolute powers, known as the ‘Hundred Thousand Sons of Saint Louis’.

In 1810, de Sauvigny founded les Chevaliers de la Foi, a secret society for the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy and Catholicism. De Sauvigny’s political career proper began with the appointment as Prefect of Calvados from 1815-16, and at this time he also first served as a member of the Chamber of Deputies. He later served Prefect of Isère and was nominated a member of the Conseil d’État.
De Sauvigny married in 1805, the year to which the present miniature is dated and it may have been commissioned to mark the occasion. His bride was Thaïs Le Fèvre d’Ormesson (1789-1805). Their union brought together two prestigious families and the young couple lived between the castles of Bois-Herpin, Sauvigny and Ormesson.

2 7/8 in (73mm) diam.

New to the website: an unusual portrait miniature of Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar (1769–1827), Nawab of Awadh (Oudh), by Edward Nash (1778-1821) – for sale £3,500.

The Nawabs of Oudh had a record of patronising European artists, and a taste for western extravagances that often threatened to bankrupt the state. The sitter’s uncle, Asaf-ud-Daula, spent lavishly on jewels and trinkets, and employed, amongst others, John Zoffany. It is said that other artists working for Asaf-ud-Daula had great difficulty ever completing group portraits of the court, on account of the Nawab regularly beheading his ministers. In contrast, Ghazi-ud-din Haidar appears to have been a fairly benign ruler, content merely to enjoy the trappings of power and the attentions of British artists. Sir Edward Paget, the British army’s commander in chief in India, observed that he was ‘an extremely good and kind-hearted man, but like myself preferring anything and everything to his business. Accordingly, instead of attending to affairs of State, he spends his time in boat-building and house-building, in turning, in printing, in collecting European and especially English commodities of all sorts, descriptions and kinds, and, in short, idling.’

This portrait was painted after 1801, the year Nash arrived in Bombay. The artist returned to England in 1810, and as Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar became ruler in 1814, it seems that Nash portrayed him prior to his ascendance. On the death of his father, Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar became the last nawab wazir Nawab of Awadh (Oudh) (ruling 1814-1818) and the first King of Oudh (ruling 1818-1827).

1.18 in. (30 mm) high

There is a story of Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) spitefully stealing four gold boxes with portrait miniatures of Louis XVIII’s close family from the king’s study in the Tuileries Palace. Napoleon kept hold of the miniatures, even taking them with him on his banishment to St Helena. This story attests to the highly personal nature of the portrait miniature, and also speaks to Napoleon’s keen use of portraiture in his campaign for power. He was prolific in his use of portraiture for self-promotion, with miniatures playing an important role. Indeed, a royal institution for the administration of gifts (Service des presents du Roi), which had been responsible for distributing miniatures of the monarch under the Ancien Régime, was revived under the Empire.

This miniature is by Joseph Parent (active 1814-33), an artist working in the style of Jean-Baptiste Isabey (1767-1855), who, like Isabey, worked to meet the great demand for portraits of Emperor Napoleon. Parent painted numerous miniatures of Napolean and his generals, and may have held an official appointment under the Empire. It is therefore likely that he would have painted the Emperor at least once from life.

It is dated 1815, the year of Napoleon’s ultimate downfall. Determined to defeat the coalition against him, Napoleon led his troops to Belgium (at the time, the United Kingdom of the Netherlands) where they would meet the combined forces of Britain and Prussia at the Battle of Waterloo on 18th June. It was Napoleon’s most crushing defeat and brought an end to the Napoleonic Wars. Although he was able to retreat and return to Paris, he abdicated in favour of his son, Napoléon François Joseph Charles Bonaparte, Napoleon II (1811–1832), on 22nd June. He surrendered to the British on 15th July and would be held in captivity for the rest of his life, being shipped to the remote island of St Helena later the same year.

#1815

Renowned for his beauty, in 1783 the six-year-old Prince Henryk Ludwick Lubomirski (1777–1850) was abducted by a distant relative, Marshal-Princess Elżbieta Izabela Lubomirska (1736-1816), in her quest for a male heir. This act made him heir to one of the most prestigious Polish aristocratic families. The artist Richard Cosway (1742-1821) would have met the boy during his time in Paris, where Princess Izabela fled in 1785 when her opposition to King Stanislaw August Poniatowski became too compromising in her native Poland. * For sale £6,500*

The Cosways visited Paris in 1787, where the artist’s wife, Maria stayed with the Princess and her young protégé. The salon of the flamboyant Polish princess, initially located in a suite of apartments at the Palais Royal rented from the duc d’Orléans, soon emerged as one of the centres of high society. Maria appears to have busied herself with the hectic social whirl of which the Princess was at the centre; it was while in Paris, that Maria met - and embarked on a brief romantic relationship with - the widowed Thomas Jefferson.

The marshal-princess Izabela regarded Henryk as the incarnation of ideal beauty and commissioned many prominent artists to paint her adopted son, Richard Cosway among them. The miniature dates to 1787, the same year that Elizabeth Vigée Le Brun painted him as ‘Love of Glory’ [see image 2]. She also entrusted portraits of her surrogate son to such preeminent artists as Angelica Kauffmann and Antonio Canova. Henryk went on to become, like his adoptive mother, a political activist and patron of the arts.

The portrait must have left the Lubomirski family at some point, as it passed through several eminent collections in the late 19th/ early 20th century – including that of the titan financier John Pierpont Morgan (1837-1913).

The glazed reverse contains a lock of hair, likely that of the sitter.

Learn more about ’ very exciting Lavinia Fontana discovery in today’s Instagram Live at 5pm (British Summer Time).

Nick and Emma will be joined by Dr Aoife Brady, curator of the recent, celebrated exhibition at the National Gallery of Ireland, ‘Lavinia Fontana: Trailblazer, Rule Breaker’. Nick promises to reveal some more information about this portrait – a once in a life-time discovery.
frances

# renaissanceartist

Join us at 5pm today for an Instagram Live with conservator and portrait miniatures specialist, Alan Derbyshire. Emma will be speaking to Alan about miniature painting techniques and together they will examine some important miniatures by Nicholas Hilliard (c.1547-1619) [bottom row centre of the current photo], as well as a number of pieces in our online exhibition.

Alan previously worked at the Victoria and Albert Museum where he held the position of Head of Paper, Books and Paintings Conservation. In 2018, he was awarded the Plowden Medal for significant contribution to the advancement of the conservation profession and in particular, to the field of paper conservation and the conservation of portrait miniatures. In 2020, Alan featured in the BBC series, ‘A Very British Renaissance’, and spoke to Dr James Fox about Hilliard’s remarkable techniques.

All art world eyes tonight at the opening of ‘s new exhibition focussing on the work of women artists. ‘Now You See Us - WOMEN ARTISTS IN BRITAIN 1520–1920’ runs from 16 MAY – 13 OCTOBER 2024. We’ll be seeing a few familiar faces in loans from private collections - including the remarkable self portrait by Sarah Biffin which featured in the recent exhibition (image 1). Image 2 is from the Limner website and features in our current exhibition - a rare example by Anglo-Canadian artist Anne Langton. Image 3 is a paper collage work by Mary Delany (1700-88) - who reminds us that it’s never too late to start creating - she made her first work in her 70s…