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Portrait of a Gentleman
Antonis Mor·1569
Historical Context
Moretto's Portrait of a Woman (c. 1540) demonstrates his sensitivity to female portraiture within the conventions of Lombard social decorum. Moretto's women are presented with the same direct observation as his male sitters but within the more restricted conventions of female portraiture that emphasized modesty, containment, and social propriety. The costume details — recorded with the precision that characterized Lombard portraiture's documentary impulse — establish social identity through material specificity rather than symbolic elaboration. The result is a portrait that balances social presentation with individual presence, the sitter existing as a particular person within the constraints of her social role.
Technical Analysis
Mor's oil on canvas demonstrates his signature combination of imposing formal structure with minute detail. The sitter's black costume is rendered with subtle variations of tone that create a sense of rich fabric, while the face is modeled with the precise, unflinching naturalism that defines Mor's approach.
Provenance
Probably Sir Peter Lely [d. 1680], London. (sale, London, 18 August 1682).[1] George John Spencer, 2d earl Spencer [1758-1834], Althorp House, Northamptonshire, by 1822;[2] The Earls Spencer, Althorp House; Albert Edward John Spencer, 7th earl Spencer [1892-1975], Althorp House, until 1927; (Duveen Brothers, Inc., London and New York); purchased February 1930 by Andrew W. Mellon, Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C.; deeded 28 December 1934 to The A.W. Mellon Educational and Charitable Trust, Pittsburgh; gift 1937 to NGA. [1] "A Man with a Gold Chain and a Dog," 3 ft 5 in by 2 ft 9 in, is listed after Antonis Mor's name in the handlist for the sale of Sir Peter Lely's collection; "Sir Peter Lely's Collection," _Burlington Magazine_ 83 (1943), 187. Lely's collection also included a self-portrait, among other works by Mor. Dallaway's notes to Horace Walpole's _Anecdotes of Painting in England..._, 2d ed., Ed. James Dallaway, 5 vols. (London, 1826), I: 240, first connected the painting, then in the Spencer collection, with the item in the Lely sale. Joanna Woodall has made the interesting suggestion that the picture may be identical with a three-quarter-length portrait by Mor in the Orleans collection, in conversation with Martha Wolff, 4 February 1985; see Louis-François Dubois de Saint-Gelais, _Description des Tableaux du Palais Royal..._ (Paris, 1727), 62-63, as the portrait of a Spaniard from the collection of Monsieur, that is, Philippe de France, Duke of Orléans, d. 1701. This may be the picture sold with part of the Orléans collection in London in April 1793, no. 49, for 15 guineas, as a self-portrait by Mor; see Gustav Friedrich Waagen, _Treasures of Art in Great Britain...._, 4 vols. (London, 1845), 2: 501. Christiaan Kramm, _De levens en werken der hollandsche en vlaamsche Kunstchilders beeldhouwers, graveurs, en bouwmeesters...._, 7 vols. (Amsterdam, 1857-1864) 4: 1160-1161, first linked the reference in the 1793 Orléans sale to the portrait then in the Spencer collection. However, there are a number of discrepancies between Dubois de Saint-Gelais' relatively precise description and the Gallery's painting. Thus Dubois de Saint-Gelais does not mention chains of honor, sword, or dagger, but does describe a signet ring on the hand resting on the dog's collar. Comments on the painting provided by Joanna Woodall. [2] Dibdin, Thomas Frognall. _Aedes Althorpianae; or an Account of the mansion, books, and pictures, at Althorp; the residence of George John earl Spencer, K.G....._, 2 vols., London, 1822: 1:262-263.
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