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Miniature

1804 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Mary Stuart (1542-87) succeeeded to the Scottish throne in 1542, when she was just six days old. Forced to flee to England in 1568, she effectively became a prisoner of the English Queen, Elizabeth I. She was executed in 1587, having been found guilty of plotting to overthrow Elizabeth.

In the 17th century, new techniques of painting enamels allowed delicate portraits resembling tiny oil paintings to be created. These enamel miniatures were first fashionable in continental Europe, but were particularly in vogue in Britain from the 1720s to 1760s. Denis Brownell Murphy was born in Dublin around 1745. During his long career he worked in both England and Scotland. Brownell Murphy painted a set of enamel miniatures in Scotland in 1804, taking as his source portraits which were in Scottish collections at the time. He chose images illustrating the lineage of the House of Stuart, beginning with Mary Queen of Scots.

Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world’s great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Enamel on copper, papier-mâché and ormolu frame
Brief description
Enamel miniature on copper of Mary Queen of Scots, in a papier-mâché and ormolu frame, Scotland, 1804, by Denis Brownwell Murphy.
Physical description
Rectangular portrait miniature of Mary Queen of Scots wearing a red embroidered dress with a high ruff, a gold cap and a cross at her neck. The miniature is enamel on copper and the frame is papier-mâché with ormolu mounts in the shape of shells and a crown.
Dimensions
  • Depth: 1.3cm
  • Height: 16.5cm
  • Width: 14.7cm
Measured 19/02/24 IW
Gallery label
Mary, Queen of Scots 1804 Mary Stuart (1542–87) succeeded to the Scottish throne in 1542, when she was just six days old. Forced to flee to England in 1568, she effectively became a prisoner of the English queen, Elizabeth I. She was executed in 1587, having been found guilty of plotting to overthrow Elizabeth. Scotland; Denis Brownell Murphy (about 1745–1842), after an unknown version Enamel on copper in original papier-mâché frame with gilded copper-alloy mounts Museum no. Loan:Gilbert.234-2008(2009)
Credit line
The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection on loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Object history
Provenance: Johnson, Walker and Tolhurst, London, 1979.
Production
Portrait after an unknown version.
Subjects depicted
Summary
Mary Stuart (1542-87) succeeeded to the Scottish throne in 1542, when she was just six days old. Forced to flee to England in 1568, she effectively became a prisoner of the English Queen, Elizabeth I. She was executed in 1587, having been found guilty of plotting to overthrow Elizabeth.

In the 17th century, new techniques of painting enamels allowed delicate portraits resembling tiny oil paintings to be created. These enamel miniatures were first fashionable in continental Europe, but were particularly in vogue in Britain from the 1720s to 1760s. Denis Brownell Murphy was born in Dublin around 1745. During his long career he worked in both England and Scotland. Brownell Murphy painted a set of enamel miniatures in Scotland in 1804, taking as his source portraits which were in Scottish collections at the time. He chose images illustrating the lineage of the House of Stuart, beginning with Mary Queen of Scots.

Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world’s great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996.
Bibliographic reference
Coffin, Sarah and Bodo Hofstetter. Portrait Miniatures in Enamel. London: Philip Wilson Publishers Ltd. in association with the Gilbert Collection, 2000. 168 p., ill. Cat. no. 42A, pp. 89-92. ISBN 0856675334.
Other numbers
  • 1996.760.1 - The Gilbert Collection, Somerset House
  • MIN 3 A - Arthur Gilbert Number
  • MM 297 - Arthur Gilbert Number
Collection
Accession number
LOAN:GILBERT.234-2008

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Record createdJune 26, 2008
Record URL
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