George Romney

half-length, wearing nun's habit, her hands folded holding a rosary

John Fleming Leicester, 1st Baron de Tabley, Tabley House, Cheshire;
His sale, Christie's on the premises, 24 Hill Street, 7th July 1827, lot 7, (bt. for 22 gns. by Jackson);
Anonymous sale, Christie's London, 23rd November 2005, lot 28

W. Carey, Descriptive Catalogue of a Collection of Paintings by British Artists in the Possession of Sir John Fleming Leicester, 1819, p.116, no.46;
J. Young, A Catalogue of Pictures by British Artists in the Possession of Sir John Fleming Leicester, Bt., 1821, no.47;
H. Ward and W. Roberts, Romney: Catalogue Raisonné, London, 1904, Vol. II, p.139, as 'Madame Sarciena; An Italian Lady'
D. Hall, "The Tabley House Papers", Walpole Society, XXXVIII, 1962, p.119, no.81;
J. Wilson, "Hoppner's Tambourine Girl Identified", Burlington Magazine, Vol. CXXX, October 1988, p.767

STRUCTURE The canvas has been lined. PAINT SURFACE The painting appears to be in good condition and has been revarnished. ULTRAVIOLET Examination under ultraviolet light reveals scattered retouching and infilling to cracquelure overall. There is further recent minor retouching to the sitters eyes and nose. FRAME Held in a British Baroque gilded 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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The present painting was originally thought to be a portrait of Emily St. Clare, the mistress of Sir John Fleming Leicester, 1st Lord be Tabley of Tabley House (1762-1827).  Leicester commissioned several portraits of St. Clare between 1800 and 1810, by a variety of artists, including Northcote, Thompson and Hoppner, all of which are in the form of 'fancy portraits'. Recent research has now suggested however that it is more likely to be a portrait of Madame Larcena, Leicester's first mistress, of whom very little is known. Romney records sittings with Larcena in October 1786, for a three-quarter length and a copy (both for Leicester), the first of which he was paid twenty guineas for, the second either stolen or destroyed.

The portrayal of courtesans in religious clothing and with religious symbols, though strange by modern convention, was a common 18^th century illustrative devise; in fact to describe a woman as a 'nun' was to imply she was a prostitute. The symbolism is deliberate and reflects the attitudes of a society still gripped by the fear of Catholic conspiracy and resurgence. The devise was a common one and can be seen adopted by Henry Morland in the popular satire The Fair Nun Unmask'd of 1769. What is most telling about this particular portrait, however, is that it reflects the fact that the practise of dressing courtesans in the habit of a nun was an excepted practise at the very highest levels of society.

Educated at Trinity College Cambridge, Leicester, who has been described as 'the greatest patron of the national school of painting that our island ever possessed', was the eldest surviving son of Sir Peter Leicester (1732-1770) and his wife Catherine Fleming (d. 1786). Instructed in drawing by Robert Marris, Thomas Vivares and Paul Sandby, by 1789 he was one of the leading patrons of native artists in England. In 1805 he established one of the first independent public galleries for British art in London, at 24 Hill Street in Mayfair, and in 1823 offered to sell his collection to the nation to create a 'National Gallery of British Art', an offer which the government rejected.