Master of the Countess of Warwick

Sir Roy Strong, in his seminal book The English Icon, grouped together eight paintings by an anonymous artist working in the 1560s in the manner of Hans Eworth (1520–1574), whom he named after the portrait of Anne Russell, Countess of Warwick, circa 1569 (Woburn Abbey, Bedfordshire). Since this publication, a small number of other paintings that can be placed firmly in the group have come to light, including the Portrait of Mary Tichborne, dated 1565 (Philip Mould, London),¹ and the anonymous Portrait of a lady, likewise dated to 1567 (sold in these Rooms, 4 July 2001, lot 8, for £88,000).² Indeed, five of the paintings listed in Strong are also dated 1567, and are inscribed in a similar way to the present work.

Apart from two group portraits, the Master's œuvre otherwise consists entirely of female sitters, shown at bust- or half-length, turned to the left, the collars below their high ruffs open to reveal pieces of jewellery, wearing slashed doublets and the elaborate necklaces and headpieces of the Elizabethan era. This newly discovered work exemplifies these characteristics, which are extremely well-preserved, though the glazes have been lost from the sitter's facial features and there is retouching through her flesh tones. The portrait compares most closely to those of Katherine de Vere, Lady Windsor (David Arkwright),³ Susan Bertie, Countess of Kent (The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge, Canterbury),⁴ and the aforementioned anonymous portrait sold at Sotheby's, all of which are also dated 1567.

The identity of this sitter is as yet unknown, though there is a long inscription and image on an old label affixed to the reverse of the panel – written by Richard Caton (see Provenance), which identifies her as Margaret of Austria (1480–1530), probably based on a reading of the date as 1507.

Note on Provenace

Richard Caton, pioneer electrophysiologist, is credited with discovering the intrinsic electrical activity of the brain. He was instrumental in the founding of the University of Liverpool, where he also served as Lord Mayor (1907–08). He shared a common ancestor, William Caton (1618–1663), with Richard Caton (1763–1845), founder in 1787 of Catonsville, Baltimore, USA (son-in-law of Charles Carroll of Carrollton, one of the signatories of the United States Declaration of Independence), and also with the artistic Caton Woodvilles.

¹ http://www.historicalportraits.com/Gallery.asp?Page=Item&ItemID=1912&Desc=Mary-Tichborne-%7C-Master-of-the-Countess-of-Warwick

² https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Master_of_the_Countess_of_Warwick_Portrait_of_a_Lady.jpg

³ R. Strong, The English Icon, London 1969, p. 108, no. 55, reproduced.

⁴ https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/lady-susan-bertie-countess-of-kent-238193