Property from a British Private Collection
Adriana Verelst
Portrait of Sarah Churchill, née Jennings, Duchess of Marlborough, Princess of Mindelheim, Countess of Nellenburg (1660–1744), a view of the orangery at Blenheim Palace beyond
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8,000 - 12,000 GBP
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12,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
Property from a British Private Collection
Adriana Verelst
Vienna c. 1683–1769 London
Portrait of Sarah Churchill, née Jennings, Duchess of Marlborough, Princess of Mindelheim, Countess of Nellenburg (1660–1744), a view of the orangery at Blenheim Palace beyond
inscribed lower left: Sarah Jennings / Duchess of Marlborough.
oil on canvas
unframed: 127.5 x 102.5 cm.; 50¼ x 40⅜ in.
framed: 145.4 x 121 cm.; 57¼ x 47⅝ in.
Anonymous sale, London, South Kensington, Christie's, 7 September 2005, lot 21 (as attributed to Sir Godfrey Kneller);
Anonymous sale, Newbury, Dreweatts, 27 May 2021, lot 119 (as after Sir Peter Lely);
Where acquired by the present owner.
This composition closely relates to a picture at Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, which differs only in its inclusion of a family coat-of-arms and the inscription at lower left.
Recent developments in the scholarship have demonstrated that the artist previously known as Maria Verelst was in fact called Adriana.1 The daughter of Herman Verelst (1641–1699) and niece of Simon Pietersz Verelst (1644–1721(?)), both of whom were successful artists, Adriana benefited from valuable access to artistic training and professional studio equipment. She went on to become one of the leading female portrait painters in early-eighteenth century Britain.
1 P. Hancox, 'The multigenerational and cross-national artist family Verelst (c. 1618–1752): The myth of Cornelius and Maria', in Oud Holland, vol. 137, no. 4, 2024, pp. 174–200.
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