Sir John Frederick William Herschel, 1st Bt

Inscriptionback to top

Inscribed in pencil (bottom left): Pickersgill and (bottom right): Sir John Herschel

This portraitback to top

The head in this drawing is identical in detail and size with that in the engraving by W. Ward, published 1835 (example in British Museum), after Pickersgill's portrait of Herschel at St John's College, Cambridge. The drawing was probably executed by Pickersgill to help Ward with his engraving, which explains its tight technique and the faint grid-lines visible across its surface. It is not a preliminary study for the oil portrait. The St John's College portrait was exhibited VE, 1892 (239), and was also engraved by J. Cook, published 1845, and by G. Gabrielli, published 1875 (examples in NPG), the latter for the 'Eton Portrait Gallery'.

Provenanceback to top

Messrs Leggatt and Sons, purchased from them, 1904.


This extended catalogue entry is from the out-of-print National Portrait Gallery collection catalogue: Richard Ormond, Early Victorian Portraits, Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1973, and is as published then. For the most up-to-date details on individual Collection works, we recommend reading the information provided in the Search the Collection results on this website in parallel with this text.

View all known portraits for Sir John Frederick William Herschel, 1st Bt

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