Sir Joshua Reynolds (British, 1723-1792), Portrait of George, The First Marquess of Townshend, Wearing a Scarlet Coat over a Steel Cuirass

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European Works of Art

By Bonhams Skinner

Nov 11, 2021 - Nov 18, 2021

Set Reminder 2021-11-11 12:00:00 2021-11-18 19:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : European Works of Art https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/skinner/european-works-of-art-7827
Our November European Fine Art auction offers over 100 paintings and drawings from the Old Masters through the early 20th century. Bonhams Skinner bidsquare@bonhamsskinner.com

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• Lot Description
  Sir Joshua Reynolds (British, 1723-1792)
  
  Portrait of George, The First Marquess of Townshend, Wearing a Scarlet Coat over a Steel Cuirass
  Inscribed "SIR J. REYNOLDS PINXIT" u.r. and "HONble GEOe. TOWNSHEND/AFTERWARDS/MARQUESS TOWNSHEND." u.l., identified and dated "...1759" on two labels affixed to the stretcher, with loan labels from the Yale University Art Gallery (see below) and two labels from Thomas Agnew & Sons, London, also affixed to the stretcher.
  Oil on canvas, 36 3/4 x 28 1/4 in. (93.4 x 72.0 cm), in a period frame.
  Condition: Lined, retouch, bust view of the sitter enclosed within a rectangle of retouch over craquelure measuring 24 x 18 in., craquelure overall, varnish discoloration, surface grime.
  
  Provenance: Townshend Family, Raynham Hall, Norfolk (1899); to Messrs. Christie and Manson, London, Townshend Heirlooms Sale, March 5 and 6, 1904, as Lot 90; to Colnaghi, London; to Christie's London, Maj-Gen. Sir CVF Townshend sale, July 13, 1923, as Lot 132; to Agnew & Sons, London; sold by Agnew to Henry H. Townshend, Sr., New Haven, Connecticut; by family descent to the current owner.
  
  Literature: David Mannings, Sir Joshua Reynolds: A Complete Catalogue of his Paintings (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2000), Entry 1761, pp. 446-447; Graves & Cronin, iii, 976; Duleep Singh, Portraits in Norfolk Houses, 1928, ii, 213 (no. 99); The Graphic, March 12, 1904, illustrated p. 354; W 46; ApS4.
  
  Exhibitions: Agnew's 1926, 1927 (Manchester), and 1927 (London), Yale University several times between 1929-1933 for display in a University building, and in 1957 for an unknown exhibition.
  
  N.B. George Townshend was a soldier and a politician, who joined the army as a volunteer in 1743, rising as an officer under the Duke of Cumberland. Townshend was also a gifted caricaturist with a sharp wit, who did not hesitate to take aim at his superiors. Upon his temporary retirement from service in 1750, he wrote a pamphlet criticizing Cumberland's military skills. By 1758 Townshend had returned to the army, serving under General James Wolfe, assuming command of the British forces in Quebec after Wolfe was mortally wounded in 1759. However, even the revered Wolfe became the subject of Townshend's acerbic caricatures, which caused Townshend to be criticized back in England. George Townshend was made the 1st Marquess Townshend in 1787. Apparently he and Sir Joshua Reynolds must have maintained an amiable relationship, since Townshend served as a pall bearer at Reynolds' funeral.

  Condition

  
  
  Condition: Framed dimensions are 44 3/4 x 36 3/4 x 3 1/2 in.
  
  Any condition statement is given as a courtesy to a client, is only an opinion and should not be treated as a statement of fact. Skinner Inc. shall have no responsibility for any error or omission. The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections or the effects of aging.
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