John Frederick Herring Sr
(British, 1795-1865)
LANGUISH AND PANTALOON
$12,000. - 15,000.
Oil on canvas, 20" x 31"
Signed, inscribed "Languish & Pantaloon", dated 1846
$12,000. - 15,000.
Provenance: Christie, Manson and Wood, May 5, 1864; 16 Herring Pictures owned by Messrs. Fores, obtained directly from the artist.
Literature:
O. Beckett, J.F. Herring and Sons, London: J. A. Allen and
Company, 1981. The Fores engraving of this painting is
illustrated on page 166.
Reproduced for Fores' Series of the British Stud: Portraits of
Celebrated Stallions and Mares Whose Performance and Produce
are well known on the Turf.
This painting, Languish and Pantaloon, was described by The
Sporting Review as "portraits of a mare and a stallion, placed in
a paddock and most naturally and characteristically grouped.
The mare is the celebrated matron of the turf Languish, the
property of the late Marquis of Westminster. She was bred
by Mr. Bristow, by Cain, out of a Paynator mare; dam Lydia
by Poulton, out of Vanity. The horse is the well-known sire
Pantaloon, bred by Mr. Gifford, by Castrel, out of an Alexander
mare, dam Idalia by Peruvian, out of Musidora."
Pantaloon only raced at the age of 3, unbeaten in all seven starts. While
his victories were mostly against small fields in the country, he
made his mark at stud. With Pantaloon, Languish produced
Ghuznee, winner of the 1841 Epsom Oaks and Coronation
Stakes.
The venerable Fores Gallery was unquestionably the top
printmaker in England at the time. Ruffs Guide to the Turf
reported on the series: "This admirable series painted by
Herring and engraved by Harris is now in course of publication,
and if aught were wanting to establish the reputation of
the two artists, it would be found in these justly designated
master pieces. No sporting gallery has ever yet contained more
beautiful delineations of that noble animal, the horse, than are
exhibited in these interesting portraits of the celebrities of the
British Stud. The likenesses are preserved with the most striking
fidelity, the character perfectly life-like, and in the composition
of the pictures, beauty, grace, energy and animation are
displayed with exquisite effect."
Beckett lists the original paintings, by Herring, from which the
engravings were produced, as being the property of Messrs.'
Fores and as being sold at auction in 1864 by Christie, Manson
and Wood (the auction house that would eventually become
Christie's). Beckett includes an excerpt from The Sporting
Magazine: "this matchless series of thoroughbreds makes the
blood dance through one's veins to think of the deeds of these
favored of the seraglio, while to votaries of the Turf - apart
from the merit of these pictures as works of art, they are of great
importance as preserving the portrait of the most celebrated of
the blood present era."
The quote chosen by Beckett demonstrates the views held by
many horsemen of the day - the paintings by Herring serve a
greater purpose than being attractive works of art. The works
serve as pictorial documentation of the greatest horses of an
era - a historical recollection for the generations of turf
enthusiasts to come.
The other notable sires and dams featured in this series include
Sir Hercules and Beeswing, Touchstone and Emma, Camel
and Banter, Muley Moloch and Rebecca, and Lanercost and
Crucifix. These six sets of sires and dams pictured in "The
British Stud" produced some of the finest runners of the era,
including the St. Leger winner Satirist. A portrait of Satirist
by J.F. Herring Sr. is also being offered in this sale (see lot 26).