Follower of John Michael Wright

Commissioned by Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon (1609-1674), for his gallery at Clarendon House, London;
by descent to his son, Henry Hyde, 2^nd Earl of Clarendon (1638-1709), at Cornbury Park, Oxfordshire;
by descent, at Cornbury, and later The Grove, Hertfordshire, to his nephew, Henry Hyde, 2nd Earl of Rochester and later 4th Earl of Clarendon (1672-1753);
transferred to his son, Henry Hyde, 5^th Baron Hyde and Viscount Cornbury (1710-1753), in 1749, who died without issue;
by descent to his niece, Charlotte (d.1790), eldest daughter of William Capel, 3rd Earl of Essex (1697-1743), who married Thomas Villiers, 1st Earl of Clarendon (1709-1786), of the second creation;
thence by descent to the present owner

Cardiff, City Art Gallery, Portraits from Welsh Houses, 1948, no. 22

Lady T. Lewis, Lives of the Friends and Contemporaries of Lord Chancellor Clarendon, London 1852, Vol. III, no. 57, pp. 251 and 362;
J. Steegman, Portraits in Welsh Houses, Cardiff 1962, Vol. II, no. 3, p. 19;
R. Gibson, Catalogue of Portraits in the Collection of the Earl of Clarendon, Wallop 1977, no. 139, pp. 124-125

 

STRUCTURE The canvas has been lined. PAINT SURFACE The painting appears to be in good condition. There is a pronounced craquelure and crazing of the glaze overall, but there are no apparent damages or loss of paint. ULTRAVIOLET Examination under ultraviolet light reveals scattered minor retouching in the background and strengthening to the sitter's costume. FRAME Held in a carved and gilded wooden frame. To speak to a specialist about this lot please contact Julian Gascoigne on +44 (0)207 293 5482, or at julian.gascoigne@sothebys.com, or Ludo Shaw Stewart on +44 (0)207 293 5816, or at ludovic.shawstewart@sothebys.com.
"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."

The sitter was born at Transcoed in Cardiganshire, the son of Edward Vaughan and Lettice Stedan. He joined the Inner Temple in 1621, being called to the Bar in 1630 and eventually becoming a Bencher in 1660. He served as M.P. for Cardigan and shared at first with his friend Edward Hyde, later Earl of Clarendon, a distrust of Charles I's willingness to rule without Parliament. Before the outbreak of the Civil War Vaughan returned to Wales where the extent of his estates had grown considerably, and was at first part of the gentry loyal to the King. He refused to practice law under Cromwell but returned to his profession following the Restoration, also serving as M.P. for Cardiganshire in the Cavalier Parliament. A consummate debater and a much admired judge, Vaughan was made Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas in 1668 and in 1670 presided over Bushell's Case, a famous case which defended the rights of jurors rather than the judges to decide questions of fact. Later Vaughan turned against his one time friend Clarendon and played an important part in 1667 in trying to get the Lord Chancellor impeached. As Gibson points out, this portrait is therefore certain to date from well before 1667, and the family's subsequent mistrust of Vaughan would explain the fact that the portrait later lost its identity. The principle portrait of Vaughan by John Michael Wright hangs in the Guildhall, London.