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Item Ref. 3845

CHARLES HERVÉ II circa 1785-1866

This is a most appealing full-length silhouette portrait of a little girl in profile to the right. Her dress has a white collar and tiered skirt and is worn over pantaloons with flat shoes secured with ribbon straps. Her hair has been draped over her ears with a plaited loop tied with ribbon on the nape of her neck.

The silhouette is cut and beautifully painted in shades of black watercolour with a touch of Chinese white for the collar. It is backed with the artist's stencilled signature and is set in a maple veneer frame with a gilt slip. The frame is also glazed on the reverse to show the stencil.

Framed size: 103/8 x 8¼" (264 x 204mm)

Price: £325

The Hervé family boasted several silhouette artists over three generations. In addition to painting silhouettes and miniatures, Charles Hervé II was a professional fruit-grower and a professor of music. He invented a mechanical device for drawing the outline of silhouettes which he called 'Prosopographus, the Automaton Artist' and which he exhibited around the country as a great curiosity.

 

Item Ref. 3887

WILLIAM HAMLET THE YOUNGER

This is a classical head and shoulders portrait of a lady in profile to the left. Her hair has been swept into a coiled knot and secured with a plaited hair bandeau. The lady is named on the reverse as Gertrude Louisa Allen who was the second daughter and joint heiress of Ralph Allen (1737-1777) and his wife Mary (née Palmer). Gertrude did not marry; she died at Stowey House near Bath in January 1818, aged thirty-eight.

The silhouette is painted en grisaille on ivory against a rich reddish-brown background. At the time these were often referred to as 'cameo' portraits. The addition of a dark line beneath the bust gives it a three-dimensional effect.

The portrait is set in the original papier-mâché frame with a decorative gilt-metal mount and elongated bunch of grapes hanger.

Framed size: 5½ x 45/8" (130 x 118mm)

S O L D !

William Hamlet the Younger (1779-1815) worked in Bath alongside his father whom he pre-deceased.

 

Item Ref. 3646

STUDIO OF MIERS AND FIELD

This is a fine quality silhouette showing an unnamed gentleman from the Stainforth Family. He is wearing a double-breasted coat over a frilled chemise and deep stock.

The silhouette is painted on ivory and is expertly bronzed with a lot of fine detailing. It is signed 'Miers' under the bust-line and is set in a traditional papier-mâché frame with a gilt-metal mount and elongated leaf hanger.

Framed size: 4¼ x 37/8" (110 x 98mm)

Price: £450

 

Item Ref. 3633

AUGUSTIN EDOUART, 1789-1861

This is a fine example of the skilled workmanship of the celebrated silhouettist Augustin Edouart depicting a gentleman wearing an academic gown over a tail-coat. He appears to be holding a pair of gloves in his clasped hands. As before, the profile is exceptionally well cut - note especially the eyebrow in addition to the eyelash as well as the collar line and the single buttonhole. The profile is inscribed in pencil on the reverse with the sitter's name - Frederick Thackeray MD, Cambridge.

Frederick Thackeray was the son of Thomas Thackeray, one of the original surgeons to Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge in 1766. Frederick succeeded his father as a surgeon in 1796 and later qualified as a physician, transferring from the surgical staff to the medical staff in 1827. He was the brother of William Makepeace Thackeray, author of the much-loved classic novel Vanity Fair.

The silhouette is signed: 'Augn Edouart fecit 1828' and is set in what appears to be the original handsome bird's eye maple veneer frame with gilt slip. The silhouette is in excellent condition though the frame has two old wormholes on the front.

Framed size: 14 x 101/8" (186 x 148mm)

Price: £650

As an ex-Bonapartist claiming asylum in Britain, Augustin Edouart discovered by chance, when he was challenged by a friend at a dinner-party, that he had a natural aptitude for cutting likenesses, so much so that he made a successful career of it. He toured extensively throughout the British Isles for several years cutting many hundreds of profiles including some well-known figures of the day including authors, musicians, politicians and royalty. He then set sail for New York where he was likewise in demand and where he toured successfully for ten years before deciding to retire to his native home in 1849. He nearly didn't make it as his ship went down in a storm off Guernsey. Fortunately the passengers were all rescued but Edouart lost much of his precious archive of work and the will to continue with his work thereafter.

 

Item Ref. 3624

EDWARD FOSTER, 1762-1865

This is a silhouette portrait of a stout, bald-headed gentleman named Mr Musgrave who was the father of the young lady below. He is wearing a double-breasted coat and frilled chemise.

The profile is painted on card and is one of Foster's 'red' profiles, so-termed because of the reddish-brown base colour that he favoured for a time. It is heavily embellished with fine gold mixed with gum arabic. The silhouette is set in the original papier-mâché frame with a hanger bearing Foster's name above the Royal crown.

Provenance: Ex. Sue McKechnie collection (with her label on the reverse)
Literature: British Silhouette Artists and their Work 1760-1860, page 476, illus. 776
Framed size: 71/4 x 57/8" (186 x 148mm)

Price: £265

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