Fourteen mythological sketches

Born in Brussels, Medina came to London in 1686, attracted by the market for portraiture proven by Sir Godfrey Kneller. One of his earliest projects in London was a set of eight illustrations for an edition of Milton's Paradise Lost (Victoria and Albert Museum, London); rapid, slight drawings which are stylistically similar to the present group.
George Salting (1835-1909), the son of a Danish merchant who made a fortune in Australia, was educated in England where he settled in 1857. He was an art connoisseur and benefactor. By 1858 he had become a full-time collector and till his death he devoted his entire life and fortune of about £30,000 per annum to his collection which he bequeathed to the National Gallery, London, the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.