Portrait of Lady Elizabeth Pelham Nee Jones C.1680; by William Wissing (C.1656-1687) Oil on Canvas Painting

This elegant and graceful portrait was painted by William Wissing, whom by 1683 became royal painter in all but name to King Charles II and his wife Queen Catherine of Braganza. By tradition the portrait depicts Lady Pelham, probably Lady Elizabeth Pelham nee Jones, a member of an ancient family who held the estate of Stowey Court since Elizabethan times. The portrait is amongst Wissing’s finest representations of aristocratic women.

Beautifully and meticulously rendered throughout, the sitter has been depicted in a blue and white dress and a russet mantle, and set within a feigned stone cartouche. The sheer gauzy drapery that falls from her hair was depicted many times by the artist – evidence of the studio practise of the time that when an artist found success with a formula, they were not afraid to repeat it. The portrait can be dated to circa 1680 based on the sitter’s attire, hairstyle, and other portraits by Wissing using the same formula. The present portrait may have been painted to mark the occasion of her marriage on 21st March 1680 to Thomas Pelham, 1st Baron Pelham of Laughton Bt. (c.1653-1712).

Elizabeth Jones was born around 1664 and was a daughter of Sir William Jones of Ramsbury (1630-1682), Wiltshire, a lawyer and politician, and his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Edward Alleyn of Hatfield Peverel, Essex. She died and was buried at All Saints, Laughton, England on 13 October 1681 (some accounts claim she died in 1685). She had two daughters, Lucy (died 1689) and Elizabeth (died 1711), who married Charles, 2nd Viscount Townshend in 1698. Thomas Pelham’s children by his subsequent marriage to Grace Holles included Thomas Pelham-Holles, Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Newcastle-under-Lyme, and Henry Pelham, Chancellor, and Prime Minister.

Until 1897 the work was in the collection of the important Austrian and French art dealer, collector, and publisher Charles Sedelmeyer (Vienna 1837 – Paris 1925), who was active in Paris from 1866. Sedelmeyer was immensely respected in the field and helped to build some of the richest collections in the world. He was particularly fond of the Dutch School and English School of the 17th century and he collected the best works. Upon retirement he sold his stock and his private collection, which exceeded a thousand paintings by the most illustrious masters of all schools - our painting was one of them - and collectors from around the world attended these sales.

Willem Wissing was a Dutch artist who came to London in 1676 and most probably joined the studio or Sir Peter Lely, later taking it over upon Lely’s death in 1680, working for very important aristocratic patrons. King Charles II was so impressed by a portrait Wissing painted of his son the Duke of Monmouth that he commissioned his own portrait and that of his Queen Catherine of Braganza.

Our thanks to Dr Karen Hearn who has confirmed the authenticity of this work based on a photograph.

Provenance:

• With Charles Sedelmeyer (1837–1925), Paris, until 1897, invoice 11051 (label verso: “Original painting by Sir G. Kneller, Lady Pelham from me to Director Dr. jur. A. Salomonsohn sold, January 1, 1897") (red wax seal verso, "Vente Sedelmeyer Paris");

• Private collection of Dr iur. A. Salomonsohn, from 1897;

• Collection of Han Coray-Stoop (1880–1974), Erlenbach;

• Sale Fischer, Lucerne, 29 July 1925, Lot 89 (as Godfrey Kneller, portrait of Lady Pelham);

• Sale Fischer, Lucerne, 5 Sept 1942, Lot 1220 (as Godfrey Kneller, portrait of Lady Pelham), Sale: Ms. R., Zurich; [and] Dr. Roman Abt, Lucerne [and] castle property in western Switzerland, [and] Carl Schneider Collection, Jaffa, [and] André Bircher Collection, Cairo, [and] Important painting collection;

• With A. Mak, Amsterdam;

• Private collection, Switzerland

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