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Lot Essay
Mary Cornelia, 5th Marchioness of Londonderry, was the only daughter of Sir John Edwards of Garth, 1st Bt. (1770-1850), and his second wife Harriet née Johnson, widow of John Owen Herbert. On 3 August 1846, she married George Vane-Tempest, 5th Marquess of Londonderry (1821-1884). As the sole heir to her father's estate, she inherited Plas Machynlleth, Powys, Wales on his death in 1850, and she, the 5th Marquess and their six children made it their home, incorporating it into the Londonderry estates.
Robert Thorburn (1818-1885) trained at the Scottish Royal Academy and later at the Royal Academy School, where he painted miniatures exclusively. He soon received his first royal commission and painted many miniatures for Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, gaining an excellent reputation. During the 1850s, Thorburn received commissions from the wealthiest families in the country, charging up to 200 guineas for a full-length piece, such as the present miniature. He began to experiment with larger works on ivory, which he achieved by cutting the ivory from around the tusk using a lathe and then flattening it, instead of cutting smaller sheets from the centre of the tusk, which resulted in pieces only a few inches long. Thorburn was responsible for the largest known miniature painted on ivory, of the Duke of Wellington and his family, previously hung in the library at Stratfield Saye. Proud of his achievements regarding these large works, Thorburn wrote in his memoirs, ‘I gained the first Gold Medal for miniatures at the Great Exhibition of Pictures at Paris [Paris Exposition Universelle 1855] some years ago’ (BL, Add. MS 28512, fol. 188).
Robert Thorburn (1818-1885) trained at the Scottish Royal Academy and later at the Royal Academy School, where he painted miniatures exclusively. He soon received his first royal commission and painted many miniatures for Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, gaining an excellent reputation. During the 1850s, Thorburn received commissions from the wealthiest families in the country, charging up to 200 guineas for a full-length piece, such as the present miniature. He began to experiment with larger works on ivory, which he achieved by cutting the ivory from around the tusk using a lathe and then flattening it, instead of cutting smaller sheets from the centre of the tusk, which resulted in pieces only a few inches long. Thorburn was responsible for the largest known miniature painted on ivory, of the Duke of Wellington and his family, previously hung in the library at Stratfield Saye. Proud of his achievements regarding these large works, Thorburn wrote in his memoirs, ‘I gained the first Gold Medal for miniatures at the Great Exhibition of Pictures at Paris [Paris Exposition Universelle 1855] some years ago’ (BL, Add. MS 28512, fol. 188).