| Method | Mezzotint |
| Artist | Richard Earlom after Samuel Cooper |
| Published | London Published by S. Woodburn, 1810. |
| Dimensions | Image 126 x 99 mm, Plate 158 x 107 mm, Sheet 220 x 138 mm |
| Notes |
Half-length portrait of Eleanor Gwyne set within an oval. She wears a loose gown which partially reveals her breasts, and pearls around her neck. Her hair is worn in tight ringlets, and a few locks fall over her left shoulder. Eleanor 'Nell' Gwyn (1650 - 1687) was a famous actress and star of the new form of Restoration comedy, and the long-term mistress of King Charles II. Richard Earlom (1743 - 1822) was a British painter, draughtsman and printmaker. He was born in London, and was apprenticed to Giovanni Battista Cipriani, after he was discovered making sketches of the Lord Mayor's coach. This natural faculty for art manifested throughout Earlom's career, and he is believed to have taught himself the technique of mezzotint. In 1765, Earlom went to work for Jonathan Boydell, who commissioned the artist to produce a large series of works from Sir Robert Walpole's collection at Houghton Hall. His works after van Huysum, as well as the still-life painter Jan van Os, are widely recognised as his most striking. Samuel Cooper (1609 - 5th May, 1672) was a British miniature painter, and a personal acquaintance of Samuel Pepys and Alexander Pope. His most recognisable works include an unfinished miniature of Oliver Cromwell, and a portrait of John Aubrey now in the Ashmolean Museum. Not in O'Donoghue Condition: Some light discolouration and foxing to margins, and a few light areas of rubbing to image. |
| Framing | unmounted |
| Price | £80.00 |
| Stock ID | 40130 |