Charles Jervas
, Irish, c.1675-1739
Title
Portrait of Elizabeth, Countess of Bridgewater (1689-1714)Datec.1710-1714
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions
215.2 x 125.8 cm
Credit LinePresented, Mr Louis Cohen, in memory of his brother Israel, 1981
Object numberNGI.4342
DescriptionElizabeth, Countess of Bridgewater was a daughter of the renowned general, John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, one of Jervas’s patrons. In 1703 she married Scroop Egerton, later Duke of Bridgewater. Elizabeth, who sat for Jervas on several occasions, was known for her exceptional beauty and vivacity but died at just 25 from smallpox. Here Lady Bridgewater is seen in Turkish-style dress comprising a tight-fitting antery, or overdress, of lustrous satin, and a salvar, or long flowing skirt, of white satin. Red stockings draw attention to her pointed golden slippers, and her chemise is visible. She carries a silk scarf and wears a white Turkish head-dress, or talpock, with her dark hair hanging loosely over her left shoulder. Elizabeth rests her right hand on an approximation of a clavicytherium (an upright harpsichord), derived from a portrait by Andrea Sacchi of Marc’Antonio Pasqualini (c.1640; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York). Whereas the instrument in Sacchi’s picture includes the figure of Daphne carved into the top of the instrument, the equivalent in Jervas’s painting features a self-portrait. This corroborates Horace Walpole’s claim that Jervas looked on Elizabeth ‘with more than a painter’s eye; so entirely did the lovely form possess his imagination’. The bridge and stretch of water in the background may well be a pictorial pun on the sitter’s title.
March 2016
ProvenancePlunket home sale, St. Anne's, Clontarf; presented, Louis Cohen, Dublin, in memory of his brother, Israel, February 1981 (with NGI.4341)Exhibition HistoryRecent Acquisitions 1980-1981, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, 5 August - 27 September 1981
Label TextElizabeth, Countess of Bridgewater, was known for her beauty and vivacity. Here, she appears in Turkish-style dress comprising a tight-fitting antery of satin, a salvar, or long flowing skirt, and a head-dress called a talpock. She rests her hand on a clavicytherium derived from a portrait by Andrea Sacchi. However, whereas the instrument in Sacchi’s picture includes the carved figure of Daphne, the equivalent in Jervas’s portrait features a self-portrait. This corroborates the claim that Jervas looked on Elizabeth 'with more than a painter's eye; so entirely did the lovely form possess his imagination'.