Barbara Villiers, Countess of Castlemaine and Duchess of Cleveland (1640 – 1709)
Sir Peter Lely (Soest 1618 – London 1680)
National Trust Inventory Number 129855
| Category |
Paintings |
| Date |
circa 1662 |
| Materials |
Oil on canvas |
| Measurements |
1880 x 1283 mm (74 x 50 1/2 in) |
| Place of origin |
|
Summary description
Oil painting on canvas, Barbara Villiers, Countess of Castlemaine and Duchess of Cleveland (1640-1709), by Sir Peter Lely (Soest 1618 – London 1680), circa 1662. A full-length, seated, portrait of the Duchess of Cleveland, facing the viewer, with her head resting on her right hand. She wears a silver-grey satin decollete dress, with a blue cloak which she holds on her lap with her left hand.
Provenance
Recorded in the 1706 inventory as a whole length of "Dutchess Cleveland", in the “Lester Gallery”; recorded in the 1799 inventory as “Dutchess of Cleveland 4 Lely”, in the Drawing Room next the Cartoon Gallery; recorded in the 1828 inventory, ibid. (No.437); purchased by the National Trust from the Sackville family in 1988 with the aid of the National Heritage Memorial Fund.
Marks and inscriptions
Bottom right, in yellow: BARBARA DUTCHES OF / CLEVELAND DAUGHTER TO / WILLIAM VILLIERS VISCOUNT / GRANDISON
Makers and roles
Sir Peter Lely (Soest 1618 – London 1680), artist
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