This painting formed part of a private collection at the magnificent Plaish Hall in Shropshire. The hall was built during the reign of Henry VIII, in two stages 1540 and 1580, for Sir William Leighton, an Elizabethan judge who was Chief Justice and father of the 17th century poet and composer, William Leighton.This work represents the type of portrait in vogue in Britain during the 17th and 18th centuries. The portrait is datable to circa 1700 by the clothing and the ‘fontange coiffure’. This style was popular around 1700. At first the style consisted of a small pile of curled hair with ribbons and bows just above the forehead, small curls over the temples called ''confidents,'' with long curls falling over one shoulder.A real sense of the sitter’s penetrating character has been captured and the artist’s adeptness is evident in the handling through the face and hair. This sitter represents an appealing example from the period.The feigned marble cartouche was employed b...