This charming silhouette of a boy wearing a buttoned tunic and holding a spade was cut in 1837. The sepia watercolour background with its column and drapes suggests a grand interior setting. A label on the backing board names the child as Gustavus 8th Viscount Boyne.Gustavus Russell Hamilton-Russell was born at historic Brancepeth Castle, Co. Durham in May 1830 and was just seven years old when this silhouette was cut. He was the only child of Gustavus Hamilton-Russell, 7th Viscount Boyne and Emma Maria Russell. Educated at Oxford, Gustavus then married an Earl’s daughter, Katherine Frances Scott and with her had a large family of nine children. He inherited the Viscountcy in 1872 upon the death of his father.Signed ‘Augn Edouart fecit 1837’ and in good condition with just a hint of old gum around the child’s shoulder, the silhouette resides in a period bird’s eye maple veneer frame with a gilt slip. The original backing board has been replaced with conservation board.Findi...