Object Description
Watercolour on vellum. Later turned and stained bone frame.
This portrait miniature is very unusual in that the artist is working in a very archaic manner for the early seventeenth century. By the early 1630s, artists in England were starting to explore backgrounds which moved away from the distinctive blue which dominated the work of Nicholas Hilliard and to a lesser extent the work of his pupil Isaac Oliver. The red underpainting on the face also harks back to an earlier period, as a feature commonly found in portraits attributed to Levina Teerlinc (c.1510-1576).
The hesitant painting in this portrait and the archaic techniques and colours are a fascinating insight into the democratisation of portrait miniatures – by the early 17th century, they were commissioned away from court and the major cities. This work is possibly a provincial attempt to paint a portrait using the colours and techniques observed in earlier miniatures and a rare survival of possible amateur painting in this oeuvre.