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拍品專文
This previously unrecorded double-sided portrait miniature is a masterpiece by Richard Cosway and shows him working at the height of his career. It falls into a small group of double portraits depicting children from the greatest aristocratic powerhouses of the day such as the Cavendish and Spencer families, and who were cousins of the Ponsonby sitters. This group includes a signed and dated miniature of 1789 depicting Lady Georgiana Cavendish with her sister Lady Harriet Cavendish in the Spencer Collection at Althorp, a copy of which was sold Christie's, London, 7 July 2010, lot 18, and a signed and dated miniature of 1792 depicting the Hon. Henry Frederick Compton Cavendish and his sister, Lady Anne Compton Cavendish, formerly in the collection of the Rt. Hon. The Earl of Cawdor, sold Sotheby's, London, 19 October 1981, lot 145.
Cosway had enjoyed the patronage of the Ponsonby family from the time of the marriage in 1780 between Frederick Ponsonby, 3rd Earl of Bessborough and his wife Henrietta Ponsonby, Countess of Bessborough, née Spencer. Their portraits in miniature are now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, having formed part of the Salting Bequest (inv. nos. P44-1910 and P45-1910, respectively). For further information see exhibition catalogue by S. Lloyd, Richard and Maria Cosway, Regency Artists of Taste and Fashion, London, 1995, p. 118, nos. 50 and 51, illustrated in colour pl. 23 and 24. Their daughter, Lady Caroline Lamb was first painted by Richard Cosway in 1787 at the age of two (sold Bonhams, London, 22 April 2004, lot 110).
A copy by another hand of one side of the Ponsonby miniature depicting Sir Frederick and Sir William is illustrated in G. C. Williamson, Richard Cosway, R.A. and his Wife and Pupils. Miniaturists of the Eighteenth Century, London, 1897, opposite p. 14, and in G. C. Williamson, Portrait Miniatures from the Time of Holbein 1531 to that of Sir William Ross 1860. A Handbook for Collectors, London, 1897, opposite p. 168 (as by Richard Cosway, in the collection of Lord de Mauley). It appears again, along with a copy (also by another hand) of the side depicting Sir John and Lady Caroline, in G. C. Williamson, The History of Portrait Miniatures, London, 1904, vol. I, illustrated pl. LVI, no. 8 and pl. LVII, no. 4, respectively, as by Richard Cosway. They are identified and listed separately in the 'Catalogue of Pictures at Present Known' in G. C. Williamson, Richard Cosway, R.A. and his Wife and Pupils. Miniaturists of the Eighteenth Century, London 1897, p. 106 as having been exhibited at Moncorvo House, London, 1895, nos. 288 and 289 (lent by Lord de Mauley). It is interesting to note that Sir Frederick is shown wearing dark coat, waistcoat and breeches as opposed to the white waistcoat and breeches seen in the present portrait and they are both mounted in plain gilt frames.
Sir John William Ponsonby became Viscount Duncannon in 1793, Baron Duncannon in 1834 and succeeded his father as 4th Earl of Bessborough in 1844. In 1805 he married Lady Maria Fane, daughter of John Fane, 10th Earl of Westmoreland and his first wife, Sarah Anne Child. Duncannon was a whig politician and during his early career he represented in the House of Commons whig-controlled boroughs such as Knaresborough, Higham Ferrers and Malton. In 1826 he left England to occupy the main family residence, Bessborough House in Co. Kilkenny, Ireland. There, he represented the Kilkenny constituency and later became Lord Lieutenant of Co. Carlow from 1831 to 1838, and of Co. Kilkenny from 1838 to 1847. During these years he also held the office of First Commissioner of Woods and Forest and Lord Privy Seal. By now Duncannon's main political focus was on the Irish Reform Bill and, recognised as a successful negotiator, he became the intermediary between Irish leader Daniel O'Connell and the whig administration.
After inheriting the Bessborough title and estate, he was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in 1846 and almost immediately faced the social unrest generated by the potato famine. In 1847 he died at Dublin Castle and was buried at Fiddown, near Bessborough House, Co. Kilkenny.
Lady Caroline 'Caro' Lamb (née Ponsonby) spent much of her childhood at Devonshire House with her cousins, the children of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. In 1805 she married the Hon. William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne (1779-1848) and later Prime Minister, son of Peniston Lamb, 1st Viscount Melbourne and his wife Lady Elizabeth Melbourne (née Milbanke). In 1807 they had a son, Augustus. The couple gained notoriety for their tempestuous marriage, worsened in 1812 by Lady Caroline's well-publicised affair with Lord Byron who she famously described as 'Mad, bad and dangerous to know'. Byron gave her the nickname 'Caro', which she adopted publicly. By this time she had become a successful novelist and the upset caused by Byron's eventual dismissal of her manifested itself in her poems and novels. In the Gothic romance, Glenarvon she portrayed Byron as a satanic villain but Byron hit back and Lady Caroline became one of the subjects of his satirical work Don Juan. The public literary attacks continued despite a brief spell in Ireland at her husband's insistence. His own political career suffered as a result of the scandals caused by his wife and his embarrassment worsened with the revelation of a close relationship between his mother, the colourful Lady Melbourne, and his wife's former lover, Byron. Despite Lady Melbourne's attempts to rid her son of Lady Caroline, Lamb remained loyal, albeit distant, to his wife until her death in 1828 aged 42. Mentally unstable and addicted to alcohol, she had spent the last declining years of her life at Brocket Hall where her husband also died in 1848.
Sir Frederick Cavendish Ponsonby enjoyed a distinguished military career after joining the army as cornet in the 10th Light Dragoons in 1800, aged 17. He was soon promoted through the ranks: to lieutenant in the same year, to captain in 1803 and major in 1807. In 1806 he had served on the staff of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. During the Peninsular wars Ponsonby commanded the 12th Light Dragoons as Lieutenant-Colonel, seeing action mostly in Spain. He later took part in operations in the Pyrenees and the south of France and delivered the news of Napoleon's abdication to Wellington. In 1814 he returned to England and, in recognition of his services, was appointed aide-de-camp to King George III. By 1815 Ponsonby was once again commanding the 12th Light Dragoons but was seriously wounded at the Battle of Waterloo. Nursed by his sister Caroline, he later recovered from wounds to his chest and arms.
In 1825 he married Lady Emily Charlotte Bathurst (d. 1877), daughter of Henry Bathurst, 3rd Earl Bathurst and Lady Georgina Lennox, and they went on to have six children. In the same year as his marriage, Ponsonby became Major-General and in 1806 he became Governor of Malta where he remained until 1835. In December of that year he was given the colonelcy of the 86th Regiment. During the last years of his career he advised Wellington on cavalry strategy and, after his sudden death in 1837, his abridgement of Instructions for Cavalry on Outpost Duty was published in 1844.
Like his elder brother, Sir William Francis Spencer Ponsonby, later 1st Baron de Mauley was a whig politician and sat in the House of Commons between 1826 and 1837, serving as MP for Poole from 1826 to 1831; MP for Knaresborough in 1832 and MP for Dorset in the same year until 1837. In 1838 he was created Baron de Mauley. In 1814 he had married Lady Barbara Ashley-Cooper (d. 1844), the only daughter of Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 5th Earl of Shaftesbury and his wife, Barbara Webb. The couple had three children: the Hon. Charles Frederick Ashley Cooper, 2nd Baron de Mauley of Canford (1815-1896), the Hon. Frances Anne Georgiana (d. 1910), who married George Kinnaird, 9th Lord Kinnaird, and the Hon. Ashley George John (1831-1898).
Cosway had enjoyed the patronage of the Ponsonby family from the time of the marriage in 1780 between Frederick Ponsonby, 3rd Earl of Bessborough and his wife Henrietta Ponsonby, Countess of Bessborough, née Spencer. Their portraits in miniature are now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, having formed part of the Salting Bequest (inv. nos. P44-1910 and P45-1910, respectively). For further information see exhibition catalogue by S. Lloyd, Richard and Maria Cosway, Regency Artists of Taste and Fashion, London, 1995, p. 118, nos. 50 and 51, illustrated in colour pl. 23 and 24. Their daughter, Lady Caroline Lamb was first painted by Richard Cosway in 1787 at the age of two (sold Bonhams, London, 22 April 2004, lot 110).
A copy by another hand of one side of the Ponsonby miniature depicting Sir Frederick and Sir William is illustrated in G. C. Williamson, Richard Cosway, R.A. and his Wife and Pupils. Miniaturists of the Eighteenth Century, London, 1897, opposite p. 14, and in G. C. Williamson, Portrait Miniatures from the Time of Holbein 1531 to that of Sir William Ross 1860. A Handbook for Collectors, London, 1897, opposite p. 168 (as by Richard Cosway, in the collection of Lord de Mauley). It appears again, along with a copy (also by another hand) of the side depicting Sir John and Lady Caroline, in G. C. Williamson, The History of Portrait Miniatures, London, 1904, vol. I, illustrated pl. LVI, no. 8 and pl. LVII, no. 4, respectively, as by Richard Cosway. They are identified and listed separately in the 'Catalogue of Pictures at Present Known' in G. C. Williamson, Richard Cosway, R.A. and his Wife and Pupils. Miniaturists of the Eighteenth Century, London 1897, p. 106 as having been exhibited at Moncorvo House, London, 1895, nos. 288 and 289 (lent by Lord de Mauley). It is interesting to note that Sir Frederick is shown wearing dark coat, waistcoat and breeches as opposed to the white waistcoat and breeches seen in the present portrait and they are both mounted in plain gilt frames.
Sir John William Ponsonby became Viscount Duncannon in 1793, Baron Duncannon in 1834 and succeeded his father as 4th Earl of Bessborough in 1844. In 1805 he married Lady Maria Fane, daughter of John Fane, 10th Earl of Westmoreland and his first wife, Sarah Anne Child. Duncannon was a whig politician and during his early career he represented in the House of Commons whig-controlled boroughs such as Knaresborough, Higham Ferrers and Malton. In 1826 he left England to occupy the main family residence, Bessborough House in Co. Kilkenny, Ireland. There, he represented the Kilkenny constituency and later became Lord Lieutenant of Co. Carlow from 1831 to 1838, and of Co. Kilkenny from 1838 to 1847. During these years he also held the office of First Commissioner of Woods and Forest and Lord Privy Seal. By now Duncannon's main political focus was on the Irish Reform Bill and, recognised as a successful negotiator, he became the intermediary between Irish leader Daniel O'Connell and the whig administration.
After inheriting the Bessborough title and estate, he was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in 1846 and almost immediately faced the social unrest generated by the potato famine. In 1847 he died at Dublin Castle and was buried at Fiddown, near Bessborough House, Co. Kilkenny.
Lady Caroline 'Caro' Lamb (née Ponsonby) spent much of her childhood at Devonshire House with her cousins, the children of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. In 1805 she married the Hon. William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne (1779-1848) and later Prime Minister, son of Peniston Lamb, 1st Viscount Melbourne and his wife Lady Elizabeth Melbourne (née Milbanke). In 1807 they had a son, Augustus. The couple gained notoriety for their tempestuous marriage, worsened in 1812 by Lady Caroline's well-publicised affair with Lord Byron who she famously described as 'Mad, bad and dangerous to know'. Byron gave her the nickname 'Caro', which she adopted publicly. By this time she had become a successful novelist and the upset caused by Byron's eventual dismissal of her manifested itself in her poems and novels. In the Gothic romance, Glenarvon she portrayed Byron as a satanic villain but Byron hit back and Lady Caroline became one of the subjects of his satirical work Don Juan. The public literary attacks continued despite a brief spell in Ireland at her husband's insistence. His own political career suffered as a result of the scandals caused by his wife and his embarrassment worsened with the revelation of a close relationship between his mother, the colourful Lady Melbourne, and his wife's former lover, Byron. Despite Lady Melbourne's attempts to rid her son of Lady Caroline, Lamb remained loyal, albeit distant, to his wife until her death in 1828 aged 42. Mentally unstable and addicted to alcohol, she had spent the last declining years of her life at Brocket Hall where her husband also died in 1848.
Sir Frederick Cavendish Ponsonby enjoyed a distinguished military career after joining the army as cornet in the 10th Light Dragoons in 1800, aged 17. He was soon promoted through the ranks: to lieutenant in the same year, to captain in 1803 and major in 1807. In 1806 he had served on the staff of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. During the Peninsular wars Ponsonby commanded the 12th Light Dragoons as Lieutenant-Colonel, seeing action mostly in Spain. He later took part in operations in the Pyrenees and the south of France and delivered the news of Napoleon's abdication to Wellington. In 1814 he returned to England and, in recognition of his services, was appointed aide-de-camp to King George III. By 1815 Ponsonby was once again commanding the 12th Light Dragoons but was seriously wounded at the Battle of Waterloo. Nursed by his sister Caroline, he later recovered from wounds to his chest and arms.
In 1825 he married Lady Emily Charlotte Bathurst (d. 1877), daughter of Henry Bathurst, 3rd Earl Bathurst and Lady Georgina Lennox, and they went on to have six children. In the same year as his marriage, Ponsonby became Major-General and in 1806 he became Governor of Malta where he remained until 1835. In December of that year he was given the colonelcy of the 86th Regiment. During the last years of his career he advised Wellington on cavalry strategy and, after his sudden death in 1837, his abridgement of Instructions for Cavalry on Outpost Duty was published in 1844.
Like his elder brother, Sir William Francis Spencer Ponsonby, later 1st Baron de Mauley was a whig politician and sat in the House of Commons between 1826 and 1837, serving as MP for Poole from 1826 to 1831; MP for Knaresborough in 1832 and MP for Dorset in the same year until 1837. In 1838 he was created Baron de Mauley. In 1814 he had married Lady Barbara Ashley-Cooper (d. 1844), the only daughter of Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 5th Earl of Shaftesbury and his wife, Barbara Webb. The couple had three children: the Hon. Charles Frederick Ashley Cooper, 2nd Baron de Mauley of Canford (1815-1896), the Hon. Frances Anne Georgiana (d. 1910), who married George Kinnaird, 9th Lord Kinnaird, and the Hon. Ashley George John (1831-1898).