Portrait of a Gentleman of the Palmes Family, C.1695; Attributed to John Closterman.

Oil on canvas in a late 17th century carved and giltwood frame.

The PALMES family of Naburn Hall, York, and the cadet branches of Lindley Hall, North Yorkshire; Ashwell, Rutland; and Carcraig in Ireland, are an ancient English aristocratic family, noted for their adherence to Catholicism. The Palmes family of Naburn are directly descended from Mary Boleyn and her daughter, Catherine, who is generally believed to have been the daughter of Henry VIII of England while Mary was his mistress. Mary's sister, Anne Boleyn, afterwards became the second wife of Henry VIII and the mother of Elizabeth I of England:

The family were originally seated at Taunton Deane, Somerset, where Manfred de Palma/Palmes had by the "Gift of Milo Earl of Hereford & Constable of England, 53 Oxgangs of Land and 25 Messages in the Lordship of Taunton Dean". Manfred was "known to be living in the sixth year of the reign of King Stephen, 1140 AD".

The Palmes family of Naburn can trace its ancestry through a maternal line to Robert de Todeni (died 1088), a powerful Norman baron. Todeni's importance is reflected by the 80 estates in 11 counties that he was granted by William across England. His principal Lordship was at Belvoir where he built his home, Belvoir Castle, before establishing Belvoir Priory in 1076. Among Todeni's many estates was Naburn. In 1226, William Palmes of Taunton acquired the Lordship of Naburn through his marriage to Matilda, daughter or sister of Richard de Watterville; a direct descendant of Robert de Todeni from whom the land had passed to the Wattervilles. From then on, the estate continued to descend uninterrupted from father to son within the Palmes family until 1974, on the death of Commander George Bryan Palmes. The Palmes family were said to have been "unique in being able to boast an unbroken heritage". Edmund Burke described the family as "one of serious antiquity".

JOHN CLOSTERMAN (1660-1711) was born in Osnabruck, the son of an artist. His early training was from his father, but in 1679 he moved to Paris where for two years he studied under the portraitist Francois de Troy.

In 1681 Closterman came to England and entered into partnership with the established portrait painter John Riley.

By 1683 he had developed an independent practice; he was adept at baroque poses still with a slightly French influence, with rather flashily painted drapery

His clients were mainly from the intellectual and professional middle classes, and included some of the leading writers, artists, musicians and physicians of the day.

In the 1690's, as his reputation grew, he painted for more exalted and aristocratic patrons, like the Dukes of Somerset and Marlborough.

He lived in great splendour in his house in Covent Garden with his wife Hannah.

In 1699, after a visit to Rome, he fell under the spell of the Antique and painted his famous full length portraits of the Earl of Shaftesbury in Classical pose.

Closterman's last documented portrait is 1704, and he devoted his last years to dealing in Old Master paintings.

An exhibition of his work was held by the National Portrait Gallery in 1981 under the title of 'Master of the Baroque Portrait'.

SIZE:35 x 29 inches inc. frame.

PROVENANCE: By descent through the Palmes family to a branch now resident in Kent.