Sir Anthony van Dyck

Probably commissioned by the sitter and presented to his close friend Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon (1609-1674), 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 Capel, 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

London, South Kensington Museum, Exhibition of National Portraits, 1866, no. 663;
London, Royal Academy, Exhibition of Works by Van Dyck, 1900, no. 78;
Plymouth, City Museum and Art Gallery, Paintings from the Clarendon Collection, 1954, no. 22

Sir W. Musgrave, Lists of Portraits, BM Add. MS 6391, ff 77, no. 44 (listed hanging at The Grove, 1764);
G. P. Harding, List of Portraits, Pictures in Various Mansions in the United Kingdom, MS. in NPG., 1804, Vol. II, p. 210;
J. Smith, A Catalogue Raisonné of the Works of the Most Emminent Dutch. Flemish and French Painters, 9 Vols., London 1831, no. 593;
Lady T. Lewis, Lives of the Friends and Contemporaries of Lord Chancellor Clarendon: illustrative of Portraits in his Gallery, London 1852, Vol. III, pp. 255, 318-19, no. 30;
G. F. Waagen, Treasures of Art in Great Britain, London 1854, Vol. II, p. 456;
J. Guiffrey, Antoine van Dyck: sa vie et son oeuvre, Paris 1882, no. 687, and no. 692 (sic);
P. Toynbee (ed.), 'Horace Walpole "Journal of Visits to Country Seats, etc."', Walpole Society, Vol. XVI, Oxford 1928, p. 38, (listed hanging at The Grove, Hertfordshire, September 1761 - 'Sir John Mims, very capital, by Vandyck');
G. Vertue, 'Notebooks, Vol. II', Walpole Society, Vol. XX, Oxford 1932, p. 65 (listed among the portraits hanging at Cornbury, Oxfordshire);
D. Piper, Catalogue of Seventeenth Century Portraits in the National Gallery, London 1963, p. 233;
R. Gibson, Catalogue of Portraits in the Collection of the Earl of Clarendon, London 1977, p. 94, no. 104 (illus.);
T. Raylor, Cavaliers, Clubs and Literary Culture; Sir John Mennes, James Smith, and the Order of the Fancy, London 1994, p. 39, illus. p. 40;
S. J. Barnes, N. De Poorter, O. Millar, H. Vey, Van Dyck, A Complete Catalogue of His Paintings, 2004, 165, p. 558, no. IV

The following condition report is provided by Sarah Walden who is an independent expert and not an employee of Sotheby's. This painting has a very early apparently eighteenth century lining and perhaps the original stretcher. Both seem remarkably to be still capable of holding the painting safely under normal conditions, and they indicate the stability of the painting's long history in a single collection. There is no accidental damage at all. Under ultra violet light a faint inscription with the name of the sitter can be distinguished in the upper right background. The characteristically fine films of paint washed across the background show some thinness in places, especially around the silhouette of the figure, with some reinforcing retouching along the line of the shoulder on the right. On the left there seem to be possible pentimenti in the lower background, with some uneven, thinner places and a thinner border along the outline of the figure. However these are within the general scheme of things over time, and has not had caused any repaint to be added. Equally the slight wear in the browns of the glove is undisturbing. There is a rather strong line of retouching just below under the arm by the elbow, and the area around the hilt of the sword has also been strengthened. The darker side of the jacket below is rather messy with thinner patches and some scattered retouching. The head is very finely preserved, with just faint wear at the side and a little strengthening in the upper lips. The magnificent central drapery is in exceptionally beautiful condition, with all the rich glazing perfectly intact in the vivid brushwork of the sleeve and swathe of silk. This report was not done under laboratory conditions.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

"Sir John Mims, very capital, by Vandyck," Horace Wapole, 1761

"The True-wit of a Million," Robert Herrick (1591-1674)

Born of a prominent family at Sandwich in Kent, the sitter was the son of Andrew Mennes (1566-1621), and his second wife Jane, daughter of John Blechenden. A leading Royalist commander, and an experienced sailor, he was one of that close knit group of loyal subjects of the crown who gathered around Charles I during the dark days of the Civil War, and a close friend of Clarendon. A noted wit and man of letters, Mennes was also an active figure within the literary and artistic circles of the Caroline court in the years before the Civil War.

Despite a rumoured education at Corpus Christi, by his early twenties Mennes was commissioned in the King's service at sea, serving in the English Channel under Sir William Monson. His early naval career appears to have been marked by a reputation for bravery, established in 1620 when he distinguished himself in the Caribbean during a six-hour battle against superior Spanish forces off Domenica, following which he was subsequently given command the King's ship Seahorse. Despite suffering from a quick temper and a habit of speaking out against the corruption and inefficiency which characterised the Caroline navy, Mennes appears to have found ample patronage at the hands of senior officials on the navy board, including the influential, though much criticised Duke of Buckingham. Clearly a respected and reliable officer, of 'discreet and stout carriage', in November 1628 he was appointed captain of the Adventurer and, on account of his social as well as professional competence, was frequently employed in ferrying ambassadors and other distinguished travellers across the Channel. Among these, on 24^th May 1629, he brought 'a gentleman' from the Netherlands to London at the King's invitation – that gentleman was Sir Peter Paul Rubens.

Towards the end of 1629, during a hiatuses in active service, Mennes immersed himself in intellectual pursuits. He became an active member of the literary and theatrical milieu centred on The King's Company, with its winter base at Blackfriars Theatre, and a leading figure among the associated group who formed themselves into a drinking club known as The Order of the Fancy. As well as furious bouts of drinking and 'wit combats' those who frequented these gatherings, including the playwright Philip Massinger, the actor Thomas Pollard, the poet Robert Herrick and Mennes himself, composed lyrics and humorous verse which was circulated around town and amongst patrons at court.

One such patron, a connoisseur who attracted many budding poets from Mennes circle and the King's leading art adviser, was Endymion Porter. It may well have been Porter who had been instrumental in securing Mennes the commission to transport Rubens to London, for he was a close friend of the painter, and deeply involved with negotiations with the Spanish court. It may also have been Porter who introduced Mennes to van Dyck, who had returned to England in 1623 and was a close friend. Van Dyck remained in England until his death in 1641, and in 1633 painted a double portrait of himself with Porter (Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid) demonstrating the intimacy of their relationship. Mennes shared Porter's interest in the visual arts, and was something of a connoisseur himself; a passion he also shared with other influential figures at court, including Edward Hyde, later 1^st Earl of Clarendon, his close friend and fellow loyal Royalist to whom, dying without issue, he would later leave this portrait.

During Witsun 1630 Mennes is believed to have accompanied Porter and Sir William Davenant on a visit to Robert Dover's Cotswold Games, an excursion charted in Davenant's poem A Journey into Worcestershire. Six years later Mennes himself contributed a poem in homage to Dover, celebrating the tradition of harmless rural pastimes, which appeared in Annalia Dubrensia. Upon the yeerely celebration of Mr. Robert Dovers Olimpick games upon Cotswold-Hills. Among the list of other contributors to the publication was the celebrated London poet Ben Jonson. Mennes's literary activities established his reputation, not only as a competent, but almost more importantly as a civilized sea captain, and helps to explain his employment on prestigious assignments such as the Rubens mission. He was also the captain entrusted with the transportation of the Duchess of Tremouille to France in December 1630, and the return of the Spanish Ambassador, Don Carlos de Coloma, in February the following year.

Back at sea, by October 1635 Mennes had risen to command of the Vanguard and was appointed Vice-Admiral in the Channel. In November 1637 he was rewarded for his loyal and accomplished service with the captaincy of Walmer Castle in his native Kent, and in April the following year took over command of the Nonsuch. A staunch royalist, with the escalation of hostilities in the preamble to the Civil War, in February 1642 Mennes was entrusted by Charles I with taking the Queen to safety in the Netherlands. Having landed Henrietta Maria at Helvoetsluys he returned to find the King still at Dover anxiously awaiting news of the Queen's safe passage. Mennes was promptly knighted, and three months later promoted Rear-Admiral.

When Parliament seized the navy Mennes, who according to Clarendon in his History of the Rebellion, was ashore with Warwick at the time, refused to acquiesce and was subsequently discharged, and transferred to the King's army. In 1643 he was General of Artillery in Lord Capel's forces in the north-west, and by June 1644 had been appointed Governor of North Wales by Prince Rupert. However, with the naval revolt of 1648 the King once more had a fighting fleet, and by January 1649 Mennes resumed service afloat as captain of the Swallow and sailed with the rest of the Royalist Fleet to Lisbon. In 1650, with his ships still in the Tagus, Mennes left to attach himself to the court in exile where he remained until the Restoration, serving principally as a secret agent. As little is known of his activities in these years it can be assumed that he was effective.

Following the Restoration Mennes was appointed a gentleman of the Privy Chamber and on the 18^th May 1661 he was formally commissioned Vice Admiral in the narrow seas. His active command was short lived however for in October he was named to succeed Slingsby as Controller of the Navy, leaving the fleet and his flagship, The Henry, to take up his seat at the Navy Board on the 2^nd November. There he was welcomed by his junior colleague, Samuel Pepys, as 'a good fair-conditioned man'. By this stage an old man and already in poor health, Mennes's tenure at the Navy Board appears not to have been as glorified as his years of active service, and criticisms of his vacillating abound in his secretary's diaries. However Pepys, though he despaired of Mennes's abilities as Controller, appears to have held a genuine affection for him as a friend, a wit and a raconteur, and particularly admired his talents as a 'mimique' and improviser in verse.  

In 1662 Mennes undertook his last official voyage at sea, sailing with Lord Peterborough to Tangier, before joining up with Sandwich in Lisbon.  Together they escorted Catherine of Braganza to England as Queen.