The Cadogan Wig

The cadogan (or catogan) wig comprising a loop of hair tied with ribbon on the nape of the neck was named after William Cadogan, First Earl Cadogan. The style was initially adopted by the military but then became more widely popular. This unknown gentleman certainly wears his with aplomb.

The profile is painted on plaster by John Miers once dubbed “the Cosway of metropolitan shadow limners”. His London studio attracted many aristocratic sitters keen to have a good likeness without the need for a time-consuming sitting. Indeed Miers’ advertised sittings were “not exceeding Five Minutes”.

Dating to the 1780s, the silhouette is housed in its original pressed brass frame (with a make-do twisted metal hanging ring). It lacks a trade label but comes with distinguished provenance having once been in the collection of Montague Guest MP (1839-1909). Guest, who was the son of Lady Charlotte Guest (née Schreiber), had a large collection of early silhouettes and prints that were dispersed after his death. The profile subsequently passed to the custody of Frances Louisa Dickson (1876-1967) of Portsmouth who collected in various fields and bequeathed many works of art to British museums.