Italian, probably Rome, mid 18th century

the head of white marble, the shoulders with coloured marble, the grey marble breast plate edged at the neck with rosso antico, on associated white marble socle

Acquired by George , 1st Lord Lyttelton ( 1709-1773). Listed by J. Heeley,  Description of Hagley Park,  1777
By descent to The Viscount Cobham, Hagley Hall Worcestershire

The Treasure Houses of Britain,  National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C. November 3 1985-March 16 1986

G. Jackson-Stops, The Treasure Houses of Britain, exh.cat. (National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985) no. 230

In overall good condition, however, there is significant surface dirt and would benefit from a light clean. There is a repaired break to one earlobe. The socle is associated and is attached with an iron dowle which projects from the bust.
"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 following two busts formed part of the furnishings of Hagley Hall, Worcestershire. The Palladian Villa was built for Sir George Lyttelton, 5th Bt., later 1st Baron Lyttelton of Frankley, between 1754 and 1760.  Hagley was the ancestral home of the Lyttelton family who had lived there since the 1560s. Horace Walpole described the original house as 'immeasurably old and bad'. Lyttelton was considered an intellectual by peers who included Horace Walpole, John Chute of the Vine in Hampshire, Thomas Prowse M.P., and the architect Sanderson Miller, and the new house reflected his sophisticated tastes and concerns.  As Christopher Hussey remarks of the new house in English Country Houses, Early Georgian 1715-160, London 1955 'the eclecticism displayed by a leading intellectual in the architecture of Hagley generally, and the empirical designing of the house by a group of clever amateurs, illustrates the conflicts of thought underlying the rococo manner, of which the interior (and the simplified exterior) are notable examples, and reflect closely the informed taste of the decade 1750-1760'. Lyttelton was the author of Observations on the Reign of Queen Elizabeth, and served as secretary to Frederick, Prince of Wales. He turned to politics and was appointed to the office of Cofferer in 1754. The position provided him with an income of some £2,200 per year, and as Lyttelton remarked 'if I hold it for 3 or 4 years [I] will build my new house without my being obliged to borrow'. He was, in fact, appointed to the Exchequer, and raised to the peerage in 1756. As Hussey writes he continued 'applying himself to literature and landscape till his death in 1773'.

Lord Lyttelton was enthusiastic regarding the building of Hagley though it appears through his correspondence with his architect Sanderson Miller (1716-1718) that he was indecisive on the direction the project should take. Lady Lyttelton was however of an altogether different nature prompting Lord North to write in 1751: 'If an Italian House is built at Hagley, it is by my Lady.'  The planning certainly caused Lord Lyttelton a great deal of distress, as he wrote to Miller on 25 August 1753, 'It is an unalterable Decree of the Fates that Grandeur and Comfortableness must not dwell together. My wife murmurs and says she shall be blown away and starv'd to Death; but she as well as the rest of the world must submit to the laws of the Goddess Taste who is now the Great Diana of England.'

The result was however a triumph and the interiors were splendidly furnished with some exemplary mid-eighteenth century furniture and decoration.  Unfortunately many of the records of the house were destroyed in the devastating fire of 1925 and so it has not been possible to directly ascribe the contents to a specific maker with any certainty. There was however a grand commission for the interiors, as there are records of Lord Lyttelton spending nearly £9,000 on the furnishings of the house, which had already cost him a substantial £25,832, according to the accounts retained at Hoare's Bank.