Portrait of King Charles I (1600-1649), bust-length, in armour

Details

After William Dobson
Portrait of King Charles I (1600-1649), bust-length, in armour
oil on canvas
19 x 15½ in. (48.3 x 39.4 cm.)
sold together with later additions (which were removed shortly before the 1983 Dobson exhibition).

Provenance

James, 4th Duke of Hamilton, styled Earl of Arran until 1698, and by descent to William, 12th Duke of Hamilton; Christie's, London, 17 June 1882, lot 39, as 'Van Dyck', 28 x 25 in. (190 gns. to J. Hollender).
Acquired in the early 20th Century, and by descent to the present owner.

Literature

A note of the pictures of the Earle of Arans [sic.], unpublished manuscript in the collection of the Duke of Hamilton, 27 August 1696, no. 3, as 'A head of King Charles the first by Dobson'.

Exhibited

London, National Portrait Gallery, William Dobson 1611-46, 21 October 1983-8 January 1983, no. 28, as William Dobson.

Special notice

No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 15% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Lot Essay

Although recorded in the 1983 Dobson exhibition catalogue, at the time of the exhibition the organisers downgraded the attribution. Very close to van Dyck in style (particularly the central head in the triple portrait of the King in the Royal Collection), the picture relates closely to a head and shoulders of the King by Dobson sold in these Rooms, 17 November 1989, lot 42. King Charles I is recorded as having sat to Dobson several times while in Oxford. Another autograph version of the type is in the Royal Collection (see O. Millar, The Tudor, Stuart and Early Georgian Pictures in the Royal Collection of Her Majesty the Queen, London, 1963, p. 113, no. 203).

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