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Sir Galbraith Lowry Cole

1 of 2 portraits by William Dyce

Sir Galbraith Lowry Cole, by William Dyce, circa 1834-1835 -NPG 946 - © National Portrait Gallery, London

© National Portrait Gallery, London

Regency Portraits Catalogue

Sir Galbraith Lowry Cole

by William Dyce
circa 1834-1835
55 1/2 in. x 43 1/2 in. (1410 mm x 1105 mm)
NPG 946

This portraitback to top

The portrait was probably painted in Edinburgh where Dyce was working mainly on portraiture 1830-7. Dyce's son, through his agent Joseph Carter, told the NPG he had several family portraits 'known to have been the early work of his father but commonly attributed to Sir Thomas Lawrence' (letters in NPG archive). A whole-length version, possibly the original, was in Government House, Cape of Good Hope, where Cole was Governor and Dyce's brother on his staff. A considerably later portrait of him by Dyce, oval head and shoulders in civilian clothes, Ribbon and Star of GCB and Jewel of Tower and Sword, was at Sotheby's 7 October 1981 (172).

Physical descriptionback to top

Three-quarter-length in lieutenant-general's uniform aged about 60, sparse sandy hair, grey eyes, fresh complexion; Ribbon of GCB, Peninsula Cross and two clasps, large Jewel of the Tower and Sword (Portugal).

Provenanceback to top

The artist and his son, James Stirling Dyce who sold it to the NPG 1893.

Exhibitionsback to top

Probably Royal Scottish Academy 1835 (146) and RA 1837 (497); 'William Dyce R.A.', Aberdeen Art Gallery and Thomas Agnew & Sons 1964 (7).

Reproductionsback to top

(of a whole-length version in the Cape of Good Hope)
Mezzotint by W. J. Ward (example in British Museum).


This extended catalogue entry is from the out-of-print National Portrait Gallery collection catalogue: Richard Walker, Regency Portraits, National Portrait Gallery, 1985, 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.

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