Richard Cosway R.A.

unfinished, wearing a coat with the Star of the Order of the Garter, gold frame with half pearl border

Hans Freiherr von Reitzes, Vienna;
Edward M. Hodgkins, London;
Greta S. Heckett, Pittsburgh, her sale in these Rooms, 11 July 1977, lot 180

Vienna, Albertina, Internationale Miniaturen-Austellung, 1924, cat. no. 167;
Pittsburgh, Carnegie Institute, Four Centuries of Portrait Miniatures from the Heckett Collection, 1954, cat. no. 8  

Bourgoing 1928, pl. 30;
Walker 1992, p. 88  

Ivory ground. Overall the work is in good condition. Along the margins there is minor glue staining (maximum 4mm. deep). There are two surface scratches on the glass.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

In October 1782 Lady Spencer wrote to her daughter, the Duchess of Devonshire, informing her 'The Prince [of Wales] dresses his hair in a new way, flattish at sides, frizzed and widish at each side and three curls at the bottom of this frizzing'. The present unfinished miniature may be dated to this period when the prince abandoned the more old-fashioned tie-wig. A finished, but smaller (3.3 cm diameter), version of the same composition is in the Royal Collection (Walker 1992, no. 176, illustrated). The Prince of Wales's name was first listed in Cosway's accounts in 1781; thereafter it appeared frequently, only ceasing after the rift between sitter and artist in 1811.

The importance of this royal patronage, which was for a long time strengthened by friendship, led Cosway to sign his works 'Primarius Pictor Serenissimi Walliae Principis' (for example, see lot 89). Inevitably, such a highfaluting signature was open to ridicule: in 1786 a print was published that parodied a Cosway self-portrait and included the lines 'Ipse pinxt. Tipsy sculpt. Dicky Causway. In Plain English'.