About this lot

Description

Anglo-Flemish School, 1597 Portrait of William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, KG, PC (1520-1598), half length, in black, with a cameo brooch of Queen Elizabeth in a gemset frame on his hat, holding the White Rod of the Lord High Treasurer and wearing the Garter Ribbon inscribed along the top edge "AETA SVAE 76 / 1597" oil on oak panel in a tabernacle frame, 57 x 44 cm (22.5 x 17in); overall size 89 x 74cm (35 x 29in)
Provenance: Private collection, Germany Other Notes: William Cecil, who first served the Tudors in the reign of Edward VI, was later to become Queen Elizabeth's most trusted and powerful advisor, courtier and politician. He was Lord High Treasurer from 1572 until his death and built at Burghley, Stamford, Lincolnshire, the largest Tudor mansion and the greatest architecturally to survive until the present day.
Oil on panel. The panel is formed from two boards in vertical alignment. The join has been reinforced from the reverse with a strip of canvas. There is a split in the larger board running from the top of the painting to approximately half way down, residues of glue indicate that this has been reinforced at some stage. The paint layer has areas of raised blistering which are vulnerable. There are a few old losses around teh edges of the painting. Old retouchings have discoloured over time. The varnish layer has yellowed and become matte. There is minor wear and a few small losses to the decorative surface of the frame.

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