Elizabeth Davers, Countess of Bristol (1730-1800)
Gervase Spencer (c.1715 – London 1763)
Category
Art / Miniatures
Date
1752
Materials
Watercolour on ivory
Measurements
5 x 4.1 cm
Order this imageCollection
Ickworth, Suffolk
NT 851886
Summary
Portrait miniature, watercolour on ivory, Elizabeth Davers, Countess of Bristol (1730-1800) by Gervase Spencer (c.1715 – London 1763). 1752. Oval. Half-length portrait of a woman, turned to the right, gazing at the spectator, wearing an ivory coloured dress with blue bows. Dark brown eyes, black hair, very pale complexion. Signed and dated l.r. in black paint 'G.S. 1752', engraved on rim of gold locket 'Elizabeth, Countess of Bristol, Just in the Zenith of those Golden Days, when the Mind opens e'er the Form decays', engraved on back of locket 'G. Spencer'. Ivory oval in gold locket.
Provenance
Part of the Bristol Collection. Acquired by the National Trust in 1956 under the auspices of the National Land Fund, later the National Heritage Memorial Fund. Probably commissioned by the 4th Earl of Bristol.
Makers and roles
Gervase Spencer (c.1715 – London 1763), miniaturist