THE C ONNOISSEUR SERIES. Editedy b Gleeson White. PORTRAIT M INIATURES. THE C ONNOISSEUR SERIES. Edited ky Gleeson White. PORTRAIT M INIATURES: from the time of Holbein, 1 531, to that of Sir William Ross, i860. By GEORGE С Williamson, Lilt.D. With numerous Illustrations. Demy 8vo. 12s. bd. net. HISTORICAL P ORTRAITS: some Notes on the P ainted Portraits of Celebrated Characters of England, Scotland and Ireland. By H. B. Wheatley, F.S.A. Wilh Seventy-four Illustrations taken direct from the originals. Demy 8vo. lew. bd. net. JAPANESE I LLUSTRATION : being a History of t he Arts of Wood-cutting anil Colour Printing in Japan. By Edward F. Strange, M J. S. With Eight coloured and Eighty- eight Black-and-Wliite Illustrations. Deiny.8vo. \2s. (xi. net. RTTHE A OF THE HOUSE. By Rosamund Marriott W atson. With numerous Illustrations. Demy 8vo. (1>. net. PICTURE P OSTERS. By Charles Hiatt. With O ne Hundred and Fifty Reproductions of the most Artistic Examples of all Countries. Demy 8vo. 12s. bd. net. LONDON: G EORGE BELL AND SONS. ANDREW P LIMER. 1763-1837. LADY R AVENSWORTH, LADY PAUL, AND MISS SIMPSON. Ownhr C. J Wertheimer, Esq. PORTRAIT MINIATURES FROMHE T TIME OF HOLBEIN 13 5 1 TO THAT OF SIR WILLIAM ROSS i 860. A HANDBOOK FOR C OLLECTORS BY GEORGE С W ILLIAMSON, Litt.D. LONDON: G EORGE BELL AND SONS YORK S TREET, COVENT GARDEN, MDCCCXCVII CIIISWICK P RESS :—CHARLES WHITUNGHAXI AND CO. TOOKS COURT, CHANCERY LANE, LONDON, л/ PREFACE. In t reating of miniatures it is impossible to avoid reference to the standard book on the subject, — Dr. Propert's " History of Miniature Art." He has practically covered the entire ground in his volume, and having devoted the greater part of a well-spent life to its study, is facile princeps with regard to the art. Both to my good friend the author, and to his volume, I cordially acknowledge my indebtedness, and if in any way I have quoted him without acknow ledging the reference, I beg he will forgive me for the oversight. From i ts very sumptuous character, his volume is beyond the reach of many col lectors, and in the absence of a smaller handbook, this work has been compiled. For m any biographical notes I would acknowledge the assistance that I have received from such well-known works as Walpole's "Anecdotes" and "Letters," Bryan's " Dictionary," and Lord Ronald Gower's " Art Treasures of England." The Burlington Fine Arts Club Catalogue, very much of which was compiled by Dr. Propert, and which is inaccessible to the general VI P REFACE. public, h as also been laid under contribution, and use has been made of various articles on miniatures by Mr. Holmes, Mr. Foster, Mr. Burn, and other writers. For t he accounts of Richard Cosway, of his pupils Andrew and Nathaniel Plimer, and of John Smart, I alone am responsible. Most of this matter is new to the public, and is the result of original and careful research. For a ll the details as to various collec tions and their contents, and for the whole of Chapters I., IX., X., and XL, I alone must be held responsible, and for the general scheme of the volume. The chapters on workers in enamel and on foreign minia turists have necessarily been eompiled from books and catalogues issued on the con tinent. These I have carefully examined, and many of the statements they contain have been verified or corrected. With r egard to Andrew Robertson, I would tender my thanks to his daughter, Miss Emily Robertson, for the information placed at my disposal, both from the memoirs of her father and from family papers. For t he illustrations I am warmly grateful to all the owners of miniatures who have generously permitted their treasures to be photographed and reproduced. Specially i n this place would I tender an acknowledgment of very grateful thanks to Her Majesty the Queen, who has added to PREFACE. V il her m any gracious acts on my behalf the permission to reproduce in this volume any of the miniatures in the royal collection. To t he amateur collector I present my volume, and I trust that in his hands it may be of some service. I hope it may stimulate him to pursue with greater knowledge and enthusiasm the collection of miniatures, and I am sure that their fascination will amply repay him for his pains, and the beauty of the treasures he accumulates will be a constant source of delight to him, and an incentive to the further study both of history and of art. George С W ill1amson. The M ount, Guildford, S urrey. 1897. TABLEF O CONTENTS. PAGE Preface v Listf o Illustrations xi Chap. III. TheEarly Amateur Miniaturists Collector . 18 i III. H illiard, Oliver and Cooper . 24 IV. E ighteenth Century Miniatur ists 4 4 V. C os way and the Plimers . .61 VI. N ineteenth Century Work . 78 VII. P ainters in Enamel ... 89 VIII. F oreign Miniaturists . 115 IX. M odern Work . .124 X. B ibliography 133 XI. N otable Collections . .142 Index 1 67 LISTF O ILLUSTRATIONS. N.B. — T he copyright and privilege of reproduction for all the illustrations in this volume are strictly retained by the author on behalf of the various owners of the miniatures. Many of the photographs have been taken specially for use in this work by Messrs. Elliott and Fry, Mr. W. E. Gray, Mr. James Hyatt, Messrs. Harrison of Lincoln, and Messrs. Hinton and Robinson of Guildford. The c ollotypes are by Mr. James Hyatt of Great Russell Street, and the process blocks by Messrs. Walker and Boutall. Somef o the collotypes are, by kind permission of the author and Messrs. Sampson Low and Co., copied from Lord Ronald GoweHs monumental work on Historic Galleries of England. Special t hanks are due to Doctor Lumsden Propert and the Fine Art Society for permission to reproduce several of the minia tures from the Propert Collection recently dispersed. Manyf o the miniatures are specially recorded on the plates as signed and dated. It must not be taken that those so marked are the only ones signed or dated, but in cases where it was important to record a master's signature, or an important date, or the differ ence between the miniature illustrated and the usual work of the artist, it has been done as a guide and help to the collector. PAGE Lady R avensworth, Lady Paul, and Miss Simpson. By Andrew Plimer. Owner, С J Wertheimer, Esq Harry, l ast Duke of Bolton. Owner, Hon Mrs. Forester. Edmund, 8тн Earl ok Cork Owner, Lady Sarah Spencer. Lady Hamilton From the Hughes Anderdon Collection. Three plates on one page. All by Richard Cosway, R. A. Mr. a nd Mrs. Ellis. Owner, the Earl of II- chester. William S. Poyntz, Esq. Owner, Lady Sarah Spencer. Three plates on one page. All by Andrew Plimer A G irl's Head. By an unknown eighteenth cen tury artist, one of a set of seven, of very unusual colouring and technique. Owner, Robert Dicker, Esq xii L IST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE Queen M arie Antoinette. By M. V. Costa. Owner, J. Ward-Usher, Esq 8 Queen C atharine of Braganza, Wife of Charles II. By Nathaniel Dixon. From Princess Charlotte's Collection. Jane Hyde, Countess of Essex. By Bernard Lens. Signed and dated 1722. Both belonging to J. Ward- Usher, Esq 10 The M isses Berry. Friends of Horace Walpole. By George Engleheart. From the Goldsmid Collection. Owner, C. J. Wertheimer, Esq. 12 George M onk, Duke of Albemarle. By Samuel Cooper. Owner, Her Majesty the Queen 14 Captain F aulkner. By George Engleheart. Owner, the Earl of Wharncliffe 16 Henry V III. Two miniatures by an unknown artist who was in England prior to Holbein's first visit in 1526. Owner, Her Majesty the Queen 18 Lady A udley and Charles, Son of Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk. Both by Hol bein. Owner, Her Majesty the Queen .... 20 Catherine H oward, Wife of Henry VIII., and Henry, Son of Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk. Both by Holbein. Owner, Her Majesty the Queen 22 Princess E lizabeth. By Sir Antonio More. An oil miniature painted on slate. From the Propert Collection. Queen Anne of Denmark. By Isaac Oliver. Owner, Her Majesty the Queen . 24 The F our Miniatures by Nicholas Hilliard from the bosworth jewel belonging to Her Majesty the Queen 26 Nicholas H illiard. By Himself. Owner, Mr. J. W. Whitehead 26 Henry, P rince of Wales. By Isaac Oliver. Owner, Her Majesty the Queen 28 George C lifford, Earl of Cumberland. Philip Howard, Earl of Arundel. Queen Elizabeth. Three plates on one page. All by Isaac Oliver, and belonging to the Earl of Carlisle 30 LISTF O ILLUSTRATIONS. xiii PAGE Arthur C apel, Earl of Essex, and the Countess of Essex, in one group. By Peter James Oliver. I., Robert Owner, the Devereux, Earl of Carlisle Earl of .... Essex, 30 and Frances, Countess of Essex. Three platesthe Earl on ofone Carlisle page. All by Isaac Oliver. Owner, 32 Another M iniature of Frances Howard, COUNTESS OF Essex. By Isaac Oliver. Belong ing to the Earl of Derby 32 Two M iniatures of Queen Anne of Den mark. By Isaac Oliver. One belonging to Her CarlisleMajesty the Queen and the other to the Earl of 34 Robert D evereux, Earl of Essex. By John Hoskins. O wner, Her Majesty the Queen .. 36 Robert, Earl of Somerset, Lucius Cary Viscount Falkland, and James I.