1759. Pastel on paper, laid down on canvas, titled and dated in ink in contemporary hand on stretcher bar verso, 42.6 x 29.6cm. Stain upper right, slight rubbing. Original restored frame.

Captain John Neale Pleydell Nott (1732–1781) attended the Royal Naval Academy at Portsmouth, UK, during the 1740s. He saw service in the Mediterranean, off the Irish Coast, and off Africa and Jamaica. He passed his lieutenant’s examination in 1753 and was promoted commander of the HMS Barbadoes in September in 1759, for which this portrait was possibly commissioned. National Trust (UK) holds a later portrait.

Pastel portraits rose to prominence in England and France during the 18th century as “a cheaper, smaller, more quickly-executed alternative to oil paint, which made it the perfect medium for portraits of the ever-growing section of the population that was middle class.” Ref: Christie’s; morethannelson.com Ref Item #CL199-6

Price (AUD): $2950