Henry le Jeune The eft

Property from an Important Private Collection

Henry Le Jeune, A.R.A.
London 1819–1904
The eft

signed with monogram lower right
oil on panel
unframed: 76 x 63 cm.; 30 x 24¾ in.
framed: 105 x 92 cm.; 41¼ x 36¼ in.

Condition Report:
The panel is flat and even, providing a stable support to the paint surface. Some areas of drying craquelure which are stable. Inspection under ultraviolet light reveals opaque varnish around the edges of the panel, a fine line of retouching running vertically from the top edge (above the boy's head), further touches to the extremity of the top right corner and some pigment fluoresce to the central girl's cheek.

Catalogue Note:
The present work was one of the selected pictures in The Art Journal from 1867, the author commenting 'His real strength lies in his representation of children: here he stands without an equal among our living school of artists for truth, beauty, and natural expression'.

Provenance:
George Simpson, Wray Park, Reigate, by 1867;

Anonymous sale, London, Sotheby's, 3 November 1993, lot 100;

Where acquired by the present owner.