15th-16th Century
Portrait of a Soldier once thought to be the Spanish General Gonzalo de Cordova (1453-1515)
Inscribed FIDELITER ET EXPEDITE[R] (Faithfully and quickly) (ul)
Oil on panel
14 3/4 x 11 inches (37.5 x 28 cm)
A placard attached to the frame bears the following inscription: This Portrait of Gonsalvo de Cordova/The Great Captain/Who Conquer'd Naples for the Crown of Spain/Is Dedicated to the Memory of/Field Marshal Jeffery Lord Amherst/Who Conquered/Canada for the Crown of Gt. Britain/By Lord Frederick Campbell/Who had the Happiness to enjoy his Friendship/And to admire his Virtues/For more than Fifty Years.
The back of the frame is inscribed The Earl Amherst. Montreal Sevenoaks
Provenance:
Lord Frederick Campbell (1729-1816), possibly from his family's collection
The Earls Amherst, Montreal House, Sevenoaks, Kent
By descent in the Amherst family to Jeffrey John Arthur Amherst, 5th Earl Amherst (1896-1993)
By inheritance to the present owner
Literature:
Arundel Club publication No. 7, 1909
Max Friedländer, Early Netherlandish Painting (New York, 1971), Vol. VII, Quentin Massys, p. 65, no. 42, illus. pl. 45 (as by Massys)
Although Friedländer's catalogue gives the location of this painting as "unknown," according to sources close to the family, it remained at Montreal House, the Amherst family seat at Sevenoaks, Kent, until the house was demolished in 1936. Thereafter the painting was in the possession of the 5th Earl at his home in London until his death in 1993. Although Lord Frederick Campbell clearly believed the painting represented the Spanish hero Gonzalo de Cordoba, it is not known when or by whom that identification was made, nor what evidence might have supported it.

Loss to the panel along the upper right edge. Scattered surface losses and paint lifting. Touches of restoration visible under UV light in the background, to both sleeves, and in spots elsewhere. Below these, not clearly visible under UV light, are some areas of what appears to be much older restoration. Any condition statement is given as a courtesy to a client, is an opinion and should not be treated as a statement of fact and our Organization shall have no responsibility for any error or omission. Please contact the specialist department to request further information or additional images that may be available. Request a condition report