£2,250
The Classic Tradition : European Art from 15th to 19th Centuries | 597
Auction: 28 May 2020 at 12:00 BST
Oil on canvas
Note: Thomas Erskine was a distinguished advocate who defended Admiral Keppel, Lord George Gordon and Queen Caroline, amongst others. He became Lord Chancellor in 1806.
The original portrait by Reynolds was painted in 1786 and is no. 586 and figure 1477 in Mannings catalogue raisonne. It was given by the sitter to the Prince of Wales (later King George IV) and is in the Royal Collection. It is an identical depiction to the present painting. Mannings records that 'Waterhouse noted a moderately good copy in the style of a pupil of Lawrence hanging in the Edinburgh High School in 1950.' He records no other copies.