Portrait of Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727)

The present drawing relates to a 1702 portrait of Newton by Sir Godfrey Kneller, now in the National Portrait Gallery, London. Richardson has swapped the open collar of Kneller's portrait for a more formal cravat, and the eyes look to the right rather than directly out at the viewer as Kneller portrayed. Newton had been living in London since leaving Cambridge in 1695, and by 1702 was master of the mint, responsible for currency throughout England. In 1703 he was elected President of the Royal Society, cementing his role in London life, and his celebrity. Notoriously tricky, there are very few ad vivum portraits of Newton, and it seems likely that the present drawing, and a related study in the British Museum (Gg,1.483), were made from the Kneller portrait owing to Newton's reluctance to sit to an artist.

We are grateful to Susan Owens for her help in preparing this catalogue entry.