Wigs on the Green has dated this piece to the Regency era.
Cosby Nesbitt of Lismore House, Cavan married Elizabeth Hancox in 1820.
It seems most likely therefore that she is Anne Davis who married Cosby’s brother Thomas. Thomas and Anne’s children were born in Bideford in Devon.
Dating to the period 1800-1810, the portrait was painted by James Leakey (1775-1865). It is set with a gilt metal slip and convex glass in an attractive faux burr walnut frame.
The son of an Exeter wool-stapler (a dealer in wool), Leakey painted oil portraits and landscapes as well as miniatures, working mostly in his home town but also for a time in London and Bath. He exhibited at the Royal Academy between 1821 and 1846. He was much in demand and is said to have abandoned a planned move to Canada because he had so many outstanding commissions. Upon retirement he became a Calvinist preacher; at least three of his eleven children also became church ministers.
Framed Size: 196 x 186mm
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Wigs on the Green has dated this piece to the Regency era.
Small portraiture of character & historical interest
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Miniature Portrait by James Leakey of Exeter