Portrait of a gentleman, traditionally identified as Sir Martin Frobisher (c. 1535-1594), bust-length, wearing a breastplate

Details

Circle of Marcus Gheeraerts II (Bruges 1561-1635/6 London)
Portrait of a gentleman, traditionally identified as Sir Martin Frobisher (c. 1535-1594), bust-length, wearing a breastplate
oil on canvas
20 1/8 x 13 5/8 in. (50.8 x 34.4 cm.)

Provenance

The Hon. Geoffrey Howard (1877-1935), Castle Howard.
with Spink & Co., London, 1934, where acquired by,
The National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London; Christie's, London, 15 December 1993, lot 4, as 'Circle of Paul van Somer' (£16,100), where acquired by the present owner.

Literature

E.H.H. Archibald, ed., Portraits at the National Maritime Museum-Series I: 1570-1748, London, 1954, plate II, unpaginated, as depicting Sir Martin Frobisher.
E.H.H. Archibald, ed., A Preliminary Descriptive Catalogue of Portraits in Oils, London, 1961, unpaginated, as depicting Sir Martin Frobisher.

Lot Essay

The present sitter has traditionally been identified as the naval commander and explorer, Sir Martin Frobisher, who made three journeys to the New World between 1560 and 1578 in search of the Northwest Passage (a route to America, travelling over Canada through the Arctic Ocean). Frobisher was knighted in 1588 in recognition of his services in repelling the Spanish Armada.

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