Miles Barton Art and Interiors has dated this 18th Century Portrait Painting to the 18th Century.
Very little appears to be known of her youngest daughter Margaret and it is variously mentioned that she and a brother Henry died in infancy.
Charles D’Agar was born in Paris, the son of French portrait painter Jacques D’Agar. Soon after moving to London in 1681, Jacques secured an appointment in Copenhagen as Court painter to Christian V resulting in a move for the family to Denmark. Charles, however, after further tuition traveled back to London in 1691 and established a hugely successful portrait practice.
The Marlborough family appear to have been popular patrons of D’Agar as various portraits exist by him, notably one of Henrietta with her eldest son Willam (Sothebys British Paintings 14th March 1990 lot 45) and another of two Godolphin children (Christies Cowdray Park 13-15th September 2011 lot 300). The latter is of particular interest as contrary to the traditional description the portrait clearly depicts Margaret as a very young child swathed in a blue cloak with her eldest brother William standing in the attire of a Roman soldier.
The portrait presented here shows Margaret just a few years older than that depiction, elegantly swathed in a blue dress leaning recumbent on a red silk drape amongst a landscape – a setting we see similarly used by D’Agar in other noble portraits and is probably inspired by Godfrey Kneller’s earlier portrait of Annabella, Lady Howard c.1693. The painting passed from Henrietta, 2nd Duchess of Marloborough to her grandson the 5th Duke of Leeds.
Provenance: Francis Osbourne, 5th Duke of Leeds (1751-1799) and by descent to Clotworthy Skeffington, 11th Viscount Massereene (1842-1905); English private collection
Oil on canvas held in an early 18th century frame.
Canvas: 148 x 76cm (58 x 30 in)
Frame size: 158 x 87cm (62 x 34 ½ in)
Miles Barton Art and Interiors has dated this 18th Century Portrait Painting to the 18th Century.
17th to 19th century british and european pictures and works of art
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Portrait of Margaret Godolphin (B.1708) by Charles D’agar (1669-1723) Circa 1710
