f - NATHANIEL HONE R.A. 1718-1784

ENGRAVED:
William Humphrey, 18th July 1775;
J.R.Smith, 18th July 1775

Captain Barrington Bradshaw, by whom bequeathed in 1804 to George Bygen;
A.H. Bradshaw, and by descent in 1851 to W.Bradshaw;
Given to the father of the present owner in 1955

This fine picture is an autograph version of a portrait by Hone which was possibly exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1775 (no.157). It is recorded as having belonged to a Captain Barrington Bradshaw and, with the exception of a short break, passed by descent until acquired by the father of the present owner in 1955. Captain Bradshaw is probably the same Bradshaw recorded in the army lists of 1788 as a Lieutenant in the 2nd Life Guards. He was promoted to a captaincy the following year and retired in 1791. His name reappears in the army lists of 1799 as a Lieutenant in the 73rd Regiment of Foot. This regiment fought out in India at Seringapatam, and he may have joined up against the revolutionaries.

The story of the Spartan Boy is one of classical literature’s famous legends. The Spartans lived in the Peloponnese of Greece. They were a martial race who lived and trained for war on a daily basis, employing ‘helots’ as their slaves to work the fields. As an initiation process Spartan boys were sent out to kill both their first helot and to steal. There was no crime in either of these actions, but it was regarded as a disgrace to be caught. This is the moment which Hone has illustrated. Humphrey’s engraving of the picture was accompanied by the text “Having stolen a Cub Fox, he concealed it under his garment, when being observ'd he suffer'd it to bite him mortally / rather than undergo the disgrace of a discovery”. The Spartan boy became an emblem of the endurance and singleminded drive of the Spartans.

The fox does not look particularly malign and this could be accounted for by the fact that the model for the Spartan boy was Hone’s son, John Camillus. Hone was very fond of his children and they feature in a number of his paintings, including A Piping Boy – John Camillus Hone, now in the National Gallery of Ireland.