Sold....portrait of Jenny Myddelton (?) and Her Spaniel C.1675: Attributed to Mary Beale

Oil on canvas in late 18th c. giltwood frame.

This pleasing portrait of a young girl, thought to be Jenny Myddelton (1661-1740)shows the sitter and her dog in exactly the same pose (but reversed) as Sir Peter Lely had painted Mary of Modena, Duchess of York and later Queen of England.

Jenny Myddelton's mother was Jane Needham, Mrs. Myddelton the famous Court beauty, mistress of the Duke of Montagu and later the Earl of Rochester. It was Jane's ambition that her daughter should ultimately become the mistress of Charles ll - an event which would have ensured titles, estates and wealth for her. The plan, however, came to nought and Jenny married Charles May, Equerry to Queen Mary.

The King Charles spaniel was very fashionable and may be seen as a symbol of fidelity and as an affectionate reminder of Charles II (and more broadly of the Stuart monarchy). Its inclusion was probably intended as a reflection of the sitter's grace and her fashionable - and flattering - taste in pets.

In the background (not shown well on the photographs) can be seen what seems to be a fantasy view of the Myddelton's castles - Chirk and Ruthin. Chirk is one of the great border castles built in the late 13th c. to maintain the conquests of Edward I in Wales. In 1595 it was purchased by an Elizabethan merchant adventurer, Thomas Myddelton, whose descendants have lived there since.

The castle was the scene of two notable sieges during the Civil War - 1643 and 1659. The 'greate dyninge roome' of that period was made into a fashionable neo-classical saloon by Richard Myddelton in 1772 .As the portrait is in a frame of the 1770s it seems likely that it and the others were reframed to match, as was then the fashion.

According to an inventory of the late 19th century, 27 portraits hung in this room. The label on the reverse of this painting identifies it as Number 11, though by that time the indentity of the sitter and artist had been forgotten.

In the late 1970s Chirk was acquired by the National Trust, by which time this portrait had moved to the Myddelton's Private Wing where it remained until June 2004.

MARY BEALE (1633-99) was born Mary Cradock, daughter of the Rev. John Cradock in Suffolk; in 1651 she married Charles Beale, Lord of the Manor of Walton, and moved to London. She was already known as a painter by 1654 and she was strongly influenced by Sir Peter Lely, Principal Painter to the King and famous Court and Society portraitist.

Lely was a friend of Mrs.Beale and she sometimes copied his work and frequently used his poses in her portraits.

It was most unusual for a woman to take up a professional career as an artist at this time, but her studio thrived; her most active period was the 1670s and early '80s. Mary Beale died at Pall Mall and is buried in St. James's Church, Piccadilly.

Her work is represented in many country house collections, art galleries and museums.

PROVENANCE: the Myddelton Family of Chirk Castle, Wrexham.

Verso: 19th c. handwritten label:-'Saloon, No. 11. Little Girl and Dog - Sir Godfrey Kneller'.