Sir Peter Lely

With Thomas Agnew & Sons;
From whom purchased by William Lever, 1st Viscount Leverhulme (1851-1925) in August 1901 (bt. for £350, as 'Lady in Yellow'), hanging at Thornton Manor, and subsequently at The Hill, at the end of the Picture Gallery, circa 1920;
The Leverhulme Collection;
Their sale, London, Sotheby's, 27th June 2001, lot 373 (bt. for £75,000) 

C. R. Grundy, The Connoisseur, 1917, Vol. XLIX, no. 196-K., p. 184

The following condition report is provided by Rebecca Gregg, who is an external expert and not an employee of Sotheby's. The original canvas appears in good condition. There are no obvious planar deformations and the overall tension is good. The paint layers appear in very good condition; there are no recent damages or loss to these layers and the adhesion between the paint and ground layers and the support appears stable at present. There is a network of fine craqulure across the surface of the paint, the edges are slightly raised, however it appears stable. The painting has been recently restored. There are multiple distinct lines of over-paint throughout. There are two horizontal lines in the lower left quadrant and covering a patch in the upper left, these have been over-painted and appear to cover distinct losses to the paint layers. However, the majority of the over-paint present appears to be covering craqulure or strengthening the outlines of the composition. It does not appear to be limited to any area of loss or abrasion but is very ‘brushy’ in appearance and is excessively applied. It appears to be covering original paint. The craqulure covering the sitter’s face, chest and arms appears particularly heavily applied. The painting has been cleaned; however, there are remnants of the old discoloured varnish layer and these areas fluoresce is ultra violet examination. There is small scratch to the modern varnish layer in the lower right quadrant. The painting was examined in the frame.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

Of all Charles II's colourful mistresses, Nell Gwyn was certainly the most widely known and the most popular. Much of her attraction lies in her humble origins. Originally an orange seller, by 1665 she had become a minor actress, who was admired by Pepys for her comic style. Her obvious charms attracted the attention of Charles Sackville, Lord Buckhurst, with whom she had a brief liaison, and by 1668 she was amongst several actresses introduced to Charles II as possible mistresses.

By 1669 Nell was pregnant with her first child by the King, and in June 1670 she gave birth to a son, who she christened Charles. The following year her second son James was born, and she moved to a substantial house at the west end of Pall Mall. Generous gifts from the King followed, including a pension and the grant of Burford House at Windsor. Her ready wit and colourful language were a stark contrast to the formalities of Court life, and the King clearly found this refreshing. Her lowly origins led to much comment from other ladies at Court, but Nell was never at a loss for the requisite repartee. Sir Francis Fane heard her response to a supposed slight from the Duchess of Cleveland – she 'clapt her on the shoulder, and saide she perceaved that persons of one trade loved not one another'.

Her chief rival for the King's affections was Louise de Keroualle, Duchess of Portsmouth, and one of the best known if unsubstantiated anecdotes concerns an occasion in Oxford in March 1681 when she was surrounded by an angry mob who mistook her carriage for that of the Catholic Duchess. 'Pray good people be silent, I am the Protestant whore!' was her response to the crowd. Though she was never granted a title herself, she had the satisfaction of seeing her son Charles created Duke of St. Albans in 1684, a year before the King's death.