In preparation.
Hewetson - 39 - Conclusions.
Wednesday, 8 May 2024
Hewetson 37 - Attributed - The Portrait Bust of Prince Francis Xavier of Saxony (1730-1806).
Portrait Bust of Prince Francis Xavier of Saxony (1730-1806).
c. 1790.
White Marble.
Attributed to Christopher Hewetson.
The Tomasso Brothers Bust.
The following cut and pasted from the above website
Probably Prince Francis Xavier of Saxony, Rome, Italy, and
subsequently Dresden, Germany;
by descent to his daughter, Elisabeth Ursula Anna Cordula
Xaveria, Duchess d'Esclignac (1768-1844);
by descent to her daughter, Marie Charlotte Xaverine,
Baroness von Weissenbach (1788-1858);
by descent to her daughter, Johanna, Countess von
Korff-Schmising Kerssenbrock (1829-1906);
by descent to her daughter, Maria Xaverina Louisa, Baroness
de Weichs de Wenne, Castle Geijsteren, Limburg (1854-1927);
Certainly thence by family descent until 2014.
The present work corresponds closely in style and subject
matter to the type of portrait bust Hewetson was renowned for. The sitter,
Prince Francis Xavier of Saxony, was the second surviving son of Augustus III
of Poland (1696-1763). From 1765 until 1768 he acted as Regent to his nephew,
the infant Elector Frederick Augustus III of Saxony, performing in his name a
formal renunciation of the Polish Crown in favour of Stanislaw Poniatowski, as
was required by the treaty signed between Prussia and Russia on 11 April 1764.
In the same period Francis Xavier secretly married Countess Maria Chiara
Spinucci, former lady-in-waiting to his sister, the Dowager Electress Maria
Antonia. The union was considered below his rank and only officialised some
years later. After relinquishing his duties as Regent in 1768, the Prince moved
his family to France - where in 1774 his younger sister's son became king as
Louis XVI (1754-1793) - and lived there for twenty years under the assumed
title of Count of Lusatia. The family fled the country at the beginning of the
French Revolution and moved to Rome. The Countess died there in 1792 and some
years later Francis Xavier left the Eternal City to return to his native
Saxony, where he died in 1806. This places him in Rome towards the very end of
the 1780s and early 1790s, when Hewetson had just completed a monumental bust
of the philosopher Leibniz for the city of Hanover in Germany (1789-90), and a
portrait of the German-Italian artist Giovanni Pichler (1792), now in the
Protomoteca Capitolina in Rome. It is possible that the German element of both
these commissions was the trait d'union between Francis Xavier of Saxony and
Hewetson, but there is also another possibility.
In November 1793, Francis Xavier journeyed to Fermo for his
wife's solemn burial. This planned visit had prompted the town's authorities,
the Priori, to commission a pair of busts of the couple (see D. Silvagni, La
Corte e Società Romana nei secoli XVIII e XIX, Rome, 1883, II, p. 228). Already
in January 1793 they had asked their patron Cardinal Borgia to commission two
portrait busts of Maria Chiara and Francis Xavier, to be exhibited in the
Palazzo Priorale's main hall in time for the funeral. A nineteenth-century
document states that the Cardinal entrusted the work to "Monti e
Albicini", who are presumably to be identified with the Roman sculptors
Giovanni Monti and Carlo Albacini. Unfortunately, the bust of the Prince did
not please the Priori, who decided to hide it in a cupboard throughout Francis
Xavier's stay in Fermo. They duly expressed their dissatisfaction to Borgia in
a letter, noting the effigy looked nothing like the Prince and was also
remarkably disproportionate in comparison with his wife's much better executed
counterpart (for a full account of the Priori's commission, see Catani 2002).
The unfortunate pair of busts are to this day in Fermo, in the town's
Biblioteca, but it is possible that, following the Priori's complaints,
Cardinal Borgia decided to commission another bust of the Prince, this time
from an artist of unquestionable talent such as Hewetson. This the Priori must
have refused to acquire, both because Francis Xavier would by then have left
Fermo, and because of financial concerns (it appears the first pair of busts had
cost them a considerable sum of money). In other words, there is a possibility
that the present bust was originally executed by Hewetson for the Priori of
Fermo, under the patronage of Cardinal Borgia, but ultimately given to the
Prince instead. The portrait was inherited by the heirs of Maria Xaverina
Louisa, Baroness de Weichs de Wenne (d. 1927) and her genealogy shows a direct
matrilineal line down to one of the daughters of Francis Xavier of Saxony.
The composition perfectly represents the type of portrait
that an aristocrat and statesman such as Francis Xavier would have appreciated,
in the guise of a victorious Roman general yet with clearly recognizable facial
features. There is no mistaking the sitter's identity, given the aquiline nose,
strong brow, and pursed lips, which appear prominently in the painted portrait
of the Prince by Maurice Quentin de La Tour now in the Musée Antoine Lecuyer,
St-Quentin (fig. 1). In terms of the attribution, Hewetson's authorship is
confirmed by the present bust's parallels with the sculptor's oeuvre. The
shoulder-length bust format, with the head turning to one side, was a staple of
Neoclassical portraiture and is often adopted by Hewetson. In addition, details
such as the sitter's eyebrows and hair - described through meticulous, fluent
modelling - and the manner in which the eyelids are outlined, are also typical
of the Irish artist, as evidenced by comparison with his Pope Clement XIV now
in the Victoria & Albert Museum (fig. 2), or his Anton Rafael Mengs in the
Promoteca Capitolina (fig. 3). Similarly, the skin on Francis Xavier's face,
with its wrinkled forehead and lined cheeks, shows an attention to the material
quality of flesh, even its weight, that are also visible in the Clement XIV and
Mengs. As scholar Malcolm Baker has noted, Hewetston's works betray a unique
sensitivity in the depiction of facial phsyiognomy and, particularly, hair. A
fascinating rediscovery, the present bust is therefore a major addition to the
oeuvre of one of the foremost interpreters of Roman Neoclassicism.
We are grateful to Stefano Grandesso for suggesting the
attribution to Christopher Hewetson.
Thursday, 7 March 2024
Hewetson 36 - The Busts remaining in the studio and the unidentified busts.
(Post in preparation).
Christopher Hewetson.
(Part 36).
An Irish Sculptor in Italy -
The busts remaining in the Hewetson Studio after his death and the unidentified busts.
The 1798 Inventory of the contents of Hewetson's Studio.
A list the busts remaining in the Hewetson Studio when he died and some notes.
Some of these busts were later completed by his longtime assistant Cristoforo Prosperi.
See my separate post for the works of Prosperi.
https://bathartandarchitecture.blogspot.com/2024/02/christopher-hewetson-irish-sculptor-in.html
The inventory was compiled under the supervision of two contemporary sculptors and restorers Vincenzo Pacetti (1746 - 1820) and Carlo Albacini (1752 - 1783).
A good starting point for these important characters in the Hewetson story.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincenzo_Pacetti
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_Albacini
The studio contents list compiled from -
Christopher Hewetson: Nuovi Documenti, Nuove Interprezioni. by Paolo Coen, 2012, in "Bollettino d'arte"
Will and Inventory of Christopher Hewetson (c1737–1798): Introduction - Ana María Suárez Huerta.The British Art Journal, Vol. 15, No. 2 (Winter 2014/15), pp. 3-17.
1. Milord Plymouth. (see also no 14 Milady Plymouth). Portrait painted by Batoni,
Un busto rapresentante il ritratto di Milord Plymouth si e trovatridotto ad un punto, che della sei parti ne sono state fatte quatro (fol 4333 V).
At the time of writing I think that it is possible that these two busts are the pair of busts at the Ashmolean,
see my post - https://bathartandarchitecture.blogspot.com/2024/02/catherine-viscountess-sudely-1739-1770.html
2. Syr John Thromostron. (Throgmorton).
"Altro busto rappresentante il ritratto di Syr John Throgmostron ridotto al punto, che delle sei parti ni sono state fatte quatro e mezza".
see - https://bathartandarchitecture.blogspot.com/2024/02/hewetson-in-rome-part-14-throckmorton.html
3. Lady Carneghi. Agnes Murray Elliot (1763 - 1860).
Visited Rome with her husband Sir David Carnegie, Baron Carnegie of Kinnaird 4th Baronet of Southeske (1753 - 1805).
The couple travelled in Italy between October 1791 and August 1792, They were in Rome by December 1791 whilst in Rome in the spring of 1792.
4. Milord Buerre. Altro busto rapresentante il ritratto di Milord Buerre, che si e ritrovato compito e terminato (Fol 434 r).
Huerta makes the case for Charles William Bury, Baron Tullamore, later Viscount Charleville He knew James Byers and was probably in Rome in 1789.
He was an antiquary and president of the Royal Hibernian
Academy. He married Catherine Maria, née Dawson, the widow of James Tisdall, in
1798.
.........................
Image below National Library of Ireland.
5. Milord Harrington. Altro busto rappresentante il retrato di Milord Harrington ridotto al puntoche della sei parti Se ne sono fatte cinque.
A Mister Harrigton on Cavaliere Harrington was in Rome at this time and signed a document 16 January 1790 requesting a licence to export pictures (see Ingamells).
6. Syr John Marplerson. This is most likely Sir John Macpherson 1st Baronet (1745 - 1821).
Altro busto rappresentante il ritrato di Syr Jhon Marplerson ridotto al punto chelle sei parti. Se ne sono fatte cinque.
Sir John Macpherson 1st Baronet (1745 - 1821)
7. Milord La Touche. This entry could refer to either David Digues la Touche (1729 - 1817) or his son John la Touche (1772 - 1838).
8. Lord Clifford.
9 & 10. Milord Wemmuster and Son.
11. Groipen.
12. Milord Brunuch.
13. Unidentified Milord.
14. Milady Plymouth (see no 1 above).
This List above compiled from -
Christopher Hewetson: Nuovi Documenti, Nuove Interprezioni. by Paolo Coen, 2012, in "Bollettino d'arte"
Will and Inventory of Christopher Hewetson (c1737–1798): Introduction - Ana María Suárez Huerta.The British Art Journal, Vol. 15, No. 2 (Winter 2014/15), pp. 3-17.
.........................
Wednesday, 6 March 2024
Hewetson (Part 35) Leibnitz
(Post under construction)
Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibnitz (1646 - 1716).
Hewetson.
inscribed - Christophorus Hewetson Hibcrnus fecit Romae MDCCLXXXIIII.
1789- 80.
Image below from Bildindex
Erected in Hanover (Leibnitz Haus).
Much mutilated.
Very low resolution photograph.
..............................
Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibnitz (1646 - 1716),
Plaster bust.
Gottinngen University.
1790.
Height 85 cms.
https://sammlungen.uni-goettingen.de/objekt/record_kuniweb_1312150/
I suspect that this is an early cast - it has obviously been stripped of paint and it appears that the head has been off and glued back in place.
Hewetson (Part 34) The Tomasso Brothers Anonymous Bust.
Christopher Hewetson (Part 34)
Anonymous Bust.
Formerly with Leeds and London Dealers Tomasso Brothers.
Christopher Hewetson.
Statuary Marble on a Nero Portero Socle
Inscribed Christ.r Hewetson Fec.t.
75 cms.
Undated.
Sotheby's 21 April 2021, Lot 148.
https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2021/tomasso-the-more-a-thing-is-perfect/bust-of-a-gentleman
I am slightly suspicious of the inscription on this fine bust and suspect that it was carved after the death of Hewetson.
This is perhaps one of the 14 busts which had been paid for but were left unfinished in his studio at the time of his death and later completed by his long time and able assistant Cristoforo Prosperi.
....................................
Monday, 4 March 2024
Hewetson (Part 33) The Monument to Dr Balwin at Trinity College, Dublin erected in 1784
The Monument to Dr Balwin at Trinity College, Dublin
erected by Irish sculptor Edward Smyth in 1784.
There are no good photographs of this monument on line.
Low resolution image supposedly by Tofanelli showing Hewetson.
..............................
see - Esdaile, K.A. "Christopher Hewetson and his monument to Dr. Baldwin in Trinity College, Dublin", Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland (December 1947): 134-135.
Here transcribed from the article by Katherine Esdaile.
A Copy of Whitaker's History of Whalley, which once belonged to B. H. Beaumont (who supplied Whitaker with some of his information) proved to contain various loose notes about Christopher Hewetson, as well as a long passage relating to that sculptor's life and his important monument to Provost Baldwin1 in Trinity College, Dublin.
The relevant entries were courteously communicated by the owner of the volume in question, and as that dealing with the Baldwin Monument has a special interest for Dublin, publication in Ireland (prior to inclusion in a forthcoming Dictionary of British Sculptors) seemed advisable.
In this particular entry Beaumont is clearly quoting an MS. of Hewetson's own written in 1793 and as accounts by an 18th century sculptor of one of his own works are exceedingly rare, it seems worth while to give it verbatim et literatim. It occurs in Book VI page 49 of the above mentioned work,
"Description of Dr. Baldwin's Monument, by Christopher Hewetson, the artist, who made it.?10th April, 1793.
" The Marbles of which the monument are composed are as follows. The figures are Carrara Statuary Marble. The Base of the whole is that called here [in Italy] Africano and is only to be had now by cutting up fragments of ancient architecture.
The sarcophagus of a marble found at Porto Venere near Genova and goes by that name in Italy. The tablet for the inscription is called here Pietro Paragone, but is, I believe, ill-named. As yet no inscription has been put on this tablet or panel, but it was my direction that it should be cut in the stone and gilt, the better to harmonize with the yellow veins in the Porto Venere (golden vein called in England) and with the gilt-bronze ornaments placed on the sarcophagus.
" The Piramid is of the Red Oriental Granit and makes a much better ground for the white figures than any other hitherto used for that purpose. N.B. I was the first who applied Granit to this use.
" The subject of the monument is this: Dr. Baldwin having presided for many years over the College of Dublin as Provost, having during that time contributed towards the advancement of the salary by a strict attention to the duties of his charge, and likewise on his Death having left to the University £80,000 for the purpose of founding Professorships, I chose tomrepresent Dr. Baldwin as near his end, his Will dropping from his hand whilst with the other [hand] and the expression of his head I endeavoured to shew a reconciliation to Divine Will communicated to him by an angel.
" This figure I have represented as if just descended and stepping towards [him] holding on high, in the left hand a crown composed of a branch of Olive and of a Palm Branch, whilst with his right hand, and stooping forward, he points to the crown, as a promise to the dying man of a reward of his virtues.
" The third figure in this group is that of a Muse, the Simbol of Science, supporting her Benefactor and lamenting the near approach of his end."
So far very little has been known of Hewetson. According to Strickland (Dictionary of Irish Artists Dublin, 18913. he was the son of Christopher Hewetson of Kilkenny, born about 1739, and of such exceptional artistic abilities that he was sent by his friends to study in Rome where he stayed for the rest of his life.
But apart from stating that he received £1,000 for executing the Baldwin monument in Rome c.1771-82, that it cost £416 to transport, and arrived in Dublin in 1784,
Strickland only mentions two other works?busts sent to the Academy Exhibitions in 1786 and 1790? and is uncertain of the year of death. Consequently even Beaumont's other casual notes are valuable. For instance, his reference to a bust of Prince Augustus (George Ill's son, the Duke of Sussex) and his dating of it to 1794, forms an addition to the very scanty list of Hewetson's known works. Again, about the commission (perhaps never executed) from the notorious Bishop, Earl of Bristol for " a colossal portrait of Mr. Pitt in marble," he relates that Hewetson, having just unsatisfactory engravings to go by, only undertook it " for the love of Bread and Cheese."
Finally, Hewetson, says Beaumont, " died in 1798, partly of age and partly through anxiety caused by the French ravages in Italy, by which he suffered, absent from his native country 33 or 34 years. Buried near the tomb of Caivs Sestivs."
"It will be found that these passages and my own investigations?e.g., about busts of the Duke of Cumberland, Charles Towneley and lost busts of Thomas Westfaling and of Gavin Hamilton? add much to the information collected by Strickland. Certainly Hewetson was an accomplished artist and fully deserved the praises of his fellow-artists in Rome".
Katherine Esdaile
Friday, 1 March 2024
Hewetson (Part 32). The Duke and Duchess of St Albans.
Christopher Hewetson in Rome (Part 32).
The Busts of The Duke and Duchess of St Albans.
Images below from de Breffny.
Current whereabouts unknown.
Aubrey Beauclerk, (1740 - 1802) 2nd Baron Vere of Hanworth, subsequently 5th Duke of St Albans
Marble Bust
Height 67 cms.
He succeeded to the Barony of Vere of Hanworth on the death of his father 2 October 1781.
Married in 1763.
He and his wife were in Rome from May 1778 - 81.
Henry and Martha Swinburne were in Rome at the same time as the Duke and Duchess in 1779 and won a prize in a raffle the Duchess gave and presented it to Sir Thomas Gascoigne.
All three had their busts made by Hewetson and cast in bronze by Valadier.
see my post -
https://bathartandarchitecture.blogspot.com/2024/02/the-swinburnes-hewetson-in-rome-part-8.html
Christies attributed the pair of busts to Hewetson on stylistic grounds which seems fair.
Provenance - by descent to the Duke of St Albans and sold by him at Christies 9 July 1979 (catalogue page 11).
Current whereabouts unknown.
.....................
Lady Catherine Beauclerk, subsequently Baroness Vere of Hanworth, and Duchess of St Albans.
nee Ponsonby.
Formerly Lady Catherine Ponsonby daughter of the 2nd Earl of Bessborough.
Marble bust.
Height 67 cms
Info below TrDictionary of British and Irish Travellers in Italy..... ed, Ingamells pub. Yale 1996.
Footnotes in brackets.
1778—81 Rome (May 1778—early 1781) [Germany by Feb. 1781]
Lady Catherine had committed a 'little indiscretion' to which her father asked Beauclerk to attend, (2) doubtless her relationship with Brand (who had left a wife and children behind in England).
They took with them their eldest daughters, Catherine (d. 1803) and Caroline (d. 1838).
They were in Rome by May 1778, where their eldest son Aubrey
(1765—1815, later 6th Duke of St Albans) joined them, (3). and Thomas Bowdler
noticed them there in November. (4 ).
They were to spend nearly three years in Rome, during which
they were active as collectors. In September 1779 they sent home 'diversi
marmori consistenti nella maggior parte in restauri moderni' (and Brand sent back
eight marble columns at the same time and a further consignment of marble fragments,
a vase and two modern mosaic pictures on 11 April 1780).(5)
Smuglewicz painted two family portraits (Christie's, 23 Jun. 1978, (6) and Cheltenham AG), the first with a view of Castel Gandolfo, where the Beauclerks rented apartments through the summer of 1779. (7).
It was probably James Byres who suggested this commission; Smuglewicz had painted the Byres family and the 1790 inventory of Byres's house listed a portrait of Mr Beauclerk by [Solomon] Williams and an engraving of Lady Catherine Beauclerk. (8)
Busts of Aubrey and Lady Catherine have been attributed to Christopher Hewetson (Christie's, 9 Jul. 1979). (9).
In February 1779 Lady
Catherine organised a raffle for the marble relief of Alcyone and Ceyx by
Thomas Banks, (10) apparently to aid the sculptor on his return journey to England,
see Banks.
The Beauclerks left Rome with the Irish painter Solomon
Delane; they were in Germany by February 1781, (11) and reached England at the
end of August. (12)
Their return may have been prompted by Baron Vere (who d. 2 October
1781) although, according to Lady Mary Coke, they had had no intention of returning
while he was alive. (13)
Thomas Brand remained
abroad thinking it 'more proper not to arrive in England at the same time'. (13).
As 5th Duke of St Albans, Aubrey Beauclerk sold a large part
of his collection on 8/9 June 1798 to finance the rebuilding of Hanworth; the
sale catalogue described the works as 'collected during a long residence at
Rome, and other parts of the Continent' and included marbles from Centocelle, a
Farnese Hercules restored by Albacini, several bronzes by Zoffoli, and
paintings by Marco Ricci, Marieschi, and Delane.
1. By Ldy. Mary Lowther, see Wal.Corr., 33:294n.
2. D. Adamson & P. Beauclerk, House of Nell Gwynn,
88—90.
3. Swinburne, Courts, 1:214.
4. Eg.2001, f.216 (7 Nov.
1778).
5. ASR ABA 12, f.290 (28 Sep. 1779), f.294. (11 Apr. 1780).
6. F. Russel, Burl. Mag.,
7. Knight Letters, 75, 79. Bankes MSS (H. Bankes, 14 Jul.
1779).
8. Byres MSS.
9. Hewetson 1986, 60.
10. Swinburne, Courts, 11234.
ll. Add.36493, f.128 (Irvine, 10 Feb. 1781).
12. Wal.Corr., 33:293n3.
13. Wal.Corr.,
............................
.
.............................
Portrait of The Hon. Aubrey Beauclerk and his Family, in an elegant interior, a view to the Castel Gandolfo beyond.
Franciszek Smuglewicz (Warsaw 1745-1807 Vilno)
Image courtesy Bonhams Auctions, Lot 73, 8 Dec 2010.
https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/17863/lot/73/
,_by_Franciszek_Smuglevicz.jpg)
Portrait of The Hon. Aubrey Beauclerk and his Family, in an
elegant interior, a view to the Castel Gandolfo beyond.
oil on canvas.
66.2 x 73.8cm (26 1/16 x 29 1/16in).
Provenance -
The sitter and thence by descent to the 13th Duke St. Albans
By whom sold, Christie's, London, 23 June, 1978, lot 128
Where purchased by the family of the present owner.
LITERATURE:
D. Adamson and P. Beauclerk Dewar, The House of Nell Gwyn.
The Fortunes of the Beauclerk Family 1670-1974, (London, 1974), ill., opposite
p. 95 (as attributed to Pietro Longhi)
F. Russell, 'A Second Conversation Piece by Franciszek
Smuglevitz', in The Burlington Magazine, vol. 120, no. 904, July 1978, pp.
466-469.
Essay below from Bonham's Website.
The present work depicts The Hon. Aubrey Beauclerk
(1740-1802), later 5th Duke of St. Albans, and his family including his eldest
son Aubrey (1765-1815, later 6th Duke of St. Albans), who joined his parents in
Rome in May 1778, and their two eldest daughters, Catherine (d. 1803) and
Caroline (d. 1838).
On 4th June 1778, Lady Mary Lowther noted in a letter to
Lady Mary Coke that 'Mr Beauclerk, Lady Catherine and Mr Brand were gone
together abroad, being so in debt they found it troublesome staying at home'.
Their trip abroad may have been arranged to try to escape the rumours of an
affair between Lady Catherine and Thomas Brand. The Beauclerks spent almost
three years in Rome during which time Smuglevicz painted them twice. One of
these portraits is the present work, which depicts the family before the Castel
Gandolfo where they rented apartments for the summer of 1779. The other
portrait (now in Cheltenham Art Gallery) shows the family in the Roman campagna
with an aqueduct in the background.
The attribution of the present painting to Smuglevicz was
first suggested by Francis Russell in his Burlington Magazine article in 1978.
His attribution was in turn based on that established by Brinsley Ford for his
Portrait of James Byres and his family and also for that of the Portrait of
James Byres and his family in an interior now in the Scottish National Portrait
Gallery, Edinburgh. The present painting compares very well with these two
works both in the distinctive, subdued palette and in the meticulous treatment
of the drapery, particularly that of Lady Catherine's dress.
Franciszek Smuglevicz moved from his native Warsaw to Rome
in 1763 where he trained with Anton von Maron. It may well have been through
the latter that Smugelvicz met James Byres, the antiquary, art dealer and
cicerone for many British Grand Tourists in Rome. Byres himself commissioned
two portraits from the Polish painter, as detailed above, and he is certainly
known to have introduced other tourists to Smuglevicz (for example, he recorded
payment to the artist on behalf of Philip Yorke, later 3rd Earl of Hardwicke,
for a double portrait of Yorke and his Swiss tutor, Colonel Wittestein, most
probably the work offered at Christie's, London, 16 April, 1982, lot 16). Very
few works by Smuglevicz are known and it is surprising that, given his clear
connection with James Byres, he is not known to have executed more commissions
of this type for British Grand Tourists in Rome during his 20 year stay in the
city.
Saleroom notices -
The present painting will be included in the article 'A
speculative Grand Tour excavation: Aubrey Beauclerk, Thomas Brand and Thomas
Jenkins at Centocelle', by J. Yarker and C. Hornsby, in the 'The British Art
Journal', December, 2010
---------------------
Thomas Banks (1735 - 1805).
Thomas Banks in Rome.
Thomas Banks and his wife were in Italy from 1772 -79. For the first three years he was supported by the scholarship from the Royal Academy and the next four years at his own expense.
1777/78 the Banks family lived with painter James Durno (1745 - 95) who had arrived in Rome in June 1774, in the Stalla di Mignanelli, near the Piazza di Spagna.
Banks was treated very shoddily by the capricious Frederick Hervey, the Earl Bishop of Derry - who commissioned Cupid catching a butterfly on his wing and then reneged on the deal - it was eventually sold to the Empress of Russia, and George Grenville, later the Marquis of Buckingham refused to pay 200 guineas for a relief of Caractacus before Claudius and offered only 100 guineas.
He was seriously ill in 1779. In order for him to return to England Lady Catherine Beauclerk (later Duchess of St Albans (her bust and that of her husband were made by Hewetson cast in bronze by Valadier) organised a raffle for his Alcyone (see below) - it was won by Henry Swinburne (also portrayed by Hewetson) who gave it to Sir Thomas Gascoigne (also portrayed by Hewetson) - it is now at Lotherton Hall near Leeds.
for Banks busts see -
https://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2019/01/thomas-banks-list-of-busts.html
and for what I suggest is possibly an early self portrait -
https://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2019/01/bust-of-roubiliac-or-not.html
Alcyone and Ceyx.
Thomas Banks.
Marble relief.
0.78 x 1.12 (30 3/4 x 44 1/8 inches)
Originally at Parlington Hall, Aberford, West Yorks - the Family Seat of the Gascoignes.
Parlington Hall was abandoned in 1905 and finally demolished in 1952.
A version of this sculptural relief was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1775, see Biog Dictionary ...Yale which states it is Marble (this needs to be confirmed - I suspect that it was a terracotta or plaster macquette).
Image courtesey the Paul Mellon Photographic Archive
for a good general biography and list of works see -
For more on the works of Thomas Banks see my post-
https://english18thcenturyportraitsculpture.blogspot.com/2019/01/thomas-banks-list-of-busts.html
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