Unknown man, formerly known as Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland

Sitterback to top

• Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland (1577-1635), Statesman. Sitter associated with 11 portraits.

Artistback to top

• Cornelius Johnson (1593-1661), Portrait painter. Artist associated with 133 portraits, Sitter associated with 2 portraits.

This portraitback to top

The sitter in this portrait was once identified as Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland. However, comparison with other portraits of Portland casts doubt on this identification. It is possible that the sitter is a member of the Sandys family, perhaps Sir Henry Sandys, the younger brother of the founder of the Miserden branch of the Sandys from Gloucestershire. Although little is known about Henry, we do know that he married in 1602, making it conceivable that he was middle aged when this portrait was painted.
Cornelius Johnson was one of the most accomplished portrait painters working in England at this date. The son of a Dutch exile, Johnson painted portraits of gentry, professionals and members of the court from the 1620s.

Linked publicationsback to top

• Cooper, Tarnya (introduction) Banville, John (character sketch) Chevalier, Tracy (character sketch) Fellowes, Julian (character sketch) McCall Smith, Alexander (character sketch) Pratchett, Terry (character sketch) Singleton, Sarah (character sketch) Trollope, Joanna (character sketch) Waters, Minette (character sketch), Imagined Lives: Portraits of Unknown People, 2011 (accompanying the exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery from December 2011 - June 2012), p. 59
• Saywell, David; Simon, Jacob, Complete Illustrated Catalogue, 2004, p. 692

Linked displays and exhibitionsback to top

• Imagined Lives: Portraits of Unknown People (3 December 2011 - 8 July 2012)