After Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger

Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon (1609-1674), at Clarendon House, London;
by descent to his son, Henry Hyde, 2^nd Earl of Clarendon (1638-1709), at Cornbury Park, Oxfordshire;
by descent, at Cornbury, and later The Grove, Hertfordshire, to his nephew, Henry Hyde, 2nd Earl of Rochester and later 4th Earl of Clarendon (1672-1753);
transferred to his son, Henry Hyde, 5^th Baron Hyde and Viscount Cornbury (1710-1753), in 1749, who died without issue;
by descent to his niece, Charlotte (d.1790), eldest daughter of William Capell, 3rd Earl of Essex (1697-1743), who married Thomas Villiers, 1st Earl of Clarendon (1709-1786), of the second creation;
thence by descent to the present owner

Plymouth, City Museum and Art Gallery, Paintings from the Clarendon Collection, 1954, no. 3;
Tokyo, Queen Elizabeth and her Age, 1969;
San Francisco, The Arts of Elizabeth I, 1971;
Plymouth, City Museum and Art Gallery, on long term loan until 2010

Clarendon State Papers, Bodleian MS Clarendon 92, ff 253-254, 25;
G. P. Harding, List of Portraits, Pictures in Various Mansions in the United Kingdom, unpublished MS 1804, Vol. II, p. 209;
Lady T. Lewis, Lives of the Friends and Contemporaries of Lord Chancellor Clarendon, London 1852, Vol. III, no. 8, pp. 250, 255 and 275-278;
R. Strong, Tudor and Jacobean Portraits, London 1969, Text Volume, pp. 29-32;
E. Auerbach and C. K. Adams, Paintings and Sculpture at Hatfield House, 1971, p. 52;
R. Gibson, Catalogue of Portraits in the Collection of the Earl of Clarendon, Wallop 1977, no. 16, pp. 17-18

STRUCTURE The canvas has been lined. PAINT SURFACE The painting appears to be in good condition. There is one minor scratch in the lower left of the painting, and there are two very faintly visible small areas of old retouching to previous small tears, one in the upper right, the other in the sitter's sash. ULTRAVIOLET Examination under ultraviolet light confirms the opacity of the varnish and shows the very minor retouching mentioned above. There are a small number of further very minor scattered retouchings. FRAME Held in a carved and gilded wooden frame. To speak to a specialist about this lot please contact Julian Gascoigne on +44 (0)207 293 5482, or at julian.gascoigne@sothebys.com, or Ludo Shaw Stewart on +44 (0)207 293 5816, or at ludovic.shawstewart@sothebys.com.
"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."

Lord High Treasurer of England from 1572 and twice Secretary of State, Burghley was Elizabeth I's closest advisor, and one of the very few she trusted throughout her life. The present painting is a version of the standard second portrait type of Burghley, after the original at Hatfield, and was painted for the 1st Earl of Clarendon, for his gallery at Clarendon House, where it was both recorded by Evelyn and listed in the Bodleian inventory. The lengthy inscription indicates Clarendon's recognition of the sitter's historical importance, and is indicative of his desire to preserve the legacy of those he included in his gallery, and ensure ease of recognition.