Flemish School, early 18th Century

R. Gibson, Catalogue of Portraits in the Collection of the Earl of Clarendon, London 1977, p. 136, no. 150.

The colours of the original are a touch brighter than they appear in the catalogue illustration. The support consists of a single, stable copper panel, secured in its frame by a plank of wood. The paint surface is secure and in good condition retaining much of its original detail. Inspection under UV light reveals almost no later interventions though there are six tiny diagonal retouchings in the body of the Christ Child of between 5 and 8 mm in length presumably intended to cover up old scratches. Offered in a plain gilt wood frame in fair condition.
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The composition is based on Jan Brueghel the Elder's original in the National Gallery, London (see C. Baker and T. Henry, The National Gallery. Complete Illustrated Catalogue, London 1995, p. 78).