Valentine Green after van Dyke

Sir Thomas Wharton

19 x 27 inches

This magnificent study of C17th aristocratic bravado was originally hanging in the Marble Parlour at Houghton but as the painting has now found its way into the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg it's more important than ever to be able to examine Green's wonderful print. By the 1770s Valentine Green was at the top of his game and there were few others who could match his mastery of mezzotint. It was a talent acknowledged right at the top of Georgian society through the much coveted appointment to King George III as "Engraver to his Majesty". Thomas Wharton (1614-1684) was the son of the third Baron Wharton and as such was born into privilege and power. He became a successful politician in his own right but is pictured here, as was customary at the time, in military uniform with voluptuous van Dyke flourishes: feathered cap, fur lined gloves and ridiculously fancy boots.