After Willem Wissing Portrait of James Scott, 1st Duke of...

The Property of the Marquess of Anglesey from the Private Apartment at Plas Newydd

After Willem Wissing
Portrait of James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth (1649–1685)

oil on copper
unframed: 37.1 x 32 cm.; 14⅝ x 12⅝ in.
framed: 54.7 x 48.4 cm.; 21½ x 19 in.

Condition Report:
The copper plate is flat and stable. The paint surface is slightly dirty and the varnish has become cloudy and uneven in parts. A handful of paint losses can be observed on the lower portion of the painting, primarily on the sitter’s armour and along the lower margins towards the lower left corner, as well as two spots in the sky, one just above the sitter’s proper left elbow and the other toward the upper left corner, adjacent to the edge of the column. A few retouchings are visible to the naked eye: these are found in the clouds in the upper right corner, on the ground in the lower right corner, and on the face of the column upper left. Inspection under ultraviolet light confirms much of the above; the varnish is thick and milky, potentially obscuring older campaigns of restoration, while further retouchings can be noted in the lower right corner, on the sitter’s proper left hand and in his hair, and in the lower left corner. Overall, the painting is in good condition.

Catalogue Note:
This painting is closely related to a larger portrait of Scott, on canvas, alternatively given to Willem Wissing (1656–1687) or his studio, which was previously with Philip Mould, London, and is now in a private collection. Another version given to Wissing's studio is in the collection at Chequers Court, Buckingham.