An enamel plaque of the Madonna del Latte by Henry Bone, R.A., after Correggio signed and dated HBone 1811

signed lower right HBone, the reverse inscribed London April 1811 Painted by Henry Bone R.A. Enamel painter in Ordinary to His Majesty and Enamel painter to His R.H. the Prince Regent after the Original by Correggio in the possesion of Cap^tn Stevenson - Painted for George Bowles Esq.; within an ormolu surround engraved ENAMEL HBONE; frame with partial printed label inscribed VENTA PARCIAL Col. ANTONIO SANTAMARINA and inscribed with ink 107 and circular label inscribed in ink no. 1267 H. Bone, the backing inscribed in ink after Correggio Henry Bone no. 15 Berners Str London and with circular label inscribed no. 1267 H. Bone.

Purchased by George Bowles (d. 1817) of The Grove, Wanstead, Essex
Bequeathed to his niece, The Hon. Anne Rushout (d. unmarried 1849) and recorded still in her possession at The Grove, Wanstead in 1847
Probably bequeathed to her nephew Sir Charles Rushout Rushout, 2nd Bt. (1809-1869) of Sezincot House, Gloucestershire and by descent to his son
Sir Charles Fitzgerald Rushout, 3rd Bt. (1840-1879); probably sold Phillips & Son, London, Valuable Property Removed from Sezincot House, Gloucestershire by Order of the Executors of Sir Charles Rushout, Bart, December 9, 1879
Galerie Charles Brunner, Paris
Antonio Santamarina (1880-1974), sold Adolfo Bullrich, Buenos Aires, Venta Parcial de la colección Antonio Santamarina, October 3-5, 1955, lot 107

John Preston Neale, Views of the Seats of Noblemen and Gentlemen: in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland, 1826, III, The Honourable Anne Rushout, Wanstead Grove, listed in the Library, South Side.
Jones, Views of the Seats, Mansions, Castles, etc. of Noblemen and Gentlemen, 1829, Wanstead Grove, Essex, The Hon. Anne Rushout, listed in the Library, South Side, p. 4-B2.
J.J. Rogers, 'Notice of Henry Bone, RA, and his works, together with those of his son, Henry Pierce Bone, and of other members of the family', Journal of the Royal Insitution of Cornwall, 1880, VI, no. XXII, p. 301.
John Preston Neale, The Mansions of England, vol. I, 1847, p. 4-B2.

The enamel plaque is in good condition. The frame is regilt and with some surface dirt and discoloration. Some rubbing and small losses to the gilding along with some minor chips to the carving and some restored cracks/breaks to the carving at the top of the frame.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

George Bowles (d. 1817)

George Bowles, who died in 1817, is best known as the largest collector of the works of Angelica Kauffman (1741-1807). He lived at the Grove, Wanstead, Essex, which  he inherited upon the death of his father, Sir Humphrey Bowles, in 1784. He was a keen collector of the works of Henry Bone including portraits of his three Rushout nieces and eight copies of old master paintings. These included “Bacchus and Ariadne” after Titian, sold Christie’s London, July 4, 2013, lot 2 and painted after the original now in the National Gallery, London, originally from the Aldobrandini collection and at that time in the possession of Lord Kinnaird. It is not known exactly what his criteria were for selecting which old master paintings to copy in enamels. Obviously, this practice reflected the historicist mood of the time, but it is interesting to note that Correggio’s “Madonna del Latte” was also from the Aldobrandini collection. That said, this painting was a popular subject and several examples exist, namely in the Hermitage, St. Petersburg and in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. The Aldobrandini version, thought to be the original, is in the Fine Arts Museum, Budapest. The reverse of the enamel plaque states that it was painted “after the original by Correggio in the possession of Capt. Stevenson”. This is presumably the Captain John Stevenson (1757-1831) (Lugt 12647) whose collection was sold April 26, 1831 in London.

Bowles bequeathed his collection of enamel pictures by Bone to his niece the Hon. Anne Rushout who died unmarried in 1849. The group is listed in her possession at the Grove in Jones’s Views of the Seats, Mansions, Castles’, etc. of Noblemen and Gentlemen, in the 1829 and 1847 versions. They hung on the south side of the library, centered by “Bacchus and Ariadne”. This same room is illustrated in a watercolor of the early 1840s sold Christie’s London, November 17, 1994, lot 6. There are eight pictures listed on this south wall, of which five were enamels by Bone. Several are visible in this watercolor, the Correggio, presumably to the right of “Bacchus and Ariadne”. It is described as “an enamel, H. Bone, The Holy Family, after Correggio”.

Henry Bone (1755-1834)

Henry Bone, the son of a cabinetmaker, born in Truro, Cornwall began his career in 1767 painting on hard paste china at the Cookworthy factory in Plymouth until its bankruptcy in 1779. He subsequently moved to London where he began painting miniatures and eventually expanded into enamel copies of paintings and enamel portraits. His process involved visiting collections and copying paintings, either the originals or copies, onto a square sheet of paper. Done in pencil, these drawings were then transferred to ink and finally transferred to and fired onto a prepared enamel plaque of copper or brass. Many of the initial drawings were preserved and annotated and are now in the National Portrait Gallery, London. These drawings are discussed R. Walker, 'Henry Bone's Pencil Drawings,' The Walpole Society, 1999, Vol. 60. He was appointed enamel painter to the Prince Regent in 1801 and to George III, and he continually exhibited at the Royal Academy beginning in 1781. He was appointed as an associate of the Royal Academy in 1801 and a Royal Academician in 1811.

The Santamarina Collection

The Santamarina family collection was started by Ramon Santamarina (1827-1904) and added to by his descendants. Born in Spain, Ramon Santamarina immigrated to Argentina where he engaged in various business ventures, founding Santamarina and Sons in 1890. The collection included Argentinian and Spanish art as well as Old Master and Impressionist paintings. Antonio Santamarina (1880-1974) is best known for his exceptional collection of Impressionist paintings, formed between 1895 and 1930, including works by Manet, Degas, Monet, Renoir, and Rodin. He was particularly keen on the works of Toulouse-Lautrec. Upon his death in 1974 a sale of part of this collection was sold Sotheby's London.