Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin

Inscriptionback to top

Inscribed, top right: Sidney Lord Godolphin/Ld. High Treasurer of England.

This portraitback to top

An early copy of a kit-cat canvas by Kneller of which a version was presented to 10 Downing Street in 1827 by the Countess de Grey. [1] A circular version at Althorp [2] came from the Earl of Chichester, [3] and a version from the collection of the Duke of Newcastle, on loan to the Ministry of Works in 1955, was engraved J. Houbraken c.1743.

Footnotesback to top

1) Government Art Collection (O/26); illus. The Public Catalogue Foundation, Government Art Collection, 2007, p 163.
2) K. J. Garlick, ‘A Catalogue of Pictures at Althorp’, Wal. Soc., XLV, 1976, no.361; from the Earl of Chichester 1967 and previously lent to the Government Art Collection.
3) Seen at Stanmer by Scharf, Sir George Scharf’s Trustees’ Sketch Books, 33:55 (12 October 1886).

Referenceback to top

Piper 1963
D. Piper, Catalogue of the Seventeenth Century Portraits in the National Portrait Gallery 1625-1714, 1963, p 142.

Provenanceback to top

Lucas family, Wrest Park; Christie’s, 16 November 1917, lot 24, bought in;¹ presented by Baroness Lucas 1917.

¹ The Trustees had bid 30 gns. for this lot which was sold with another portrait for 40gns.


This extended catalogue entry is from the National Portrait Gallery collection catalogue: John Ingamells, National Portrait Gallery: Later Stuart Portraits 1685-1714, National Portrait Gallery, 2009, 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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