- 296
Sir John Watson Gordon R.A., P.R.S.A.
Description
- Sir John Watson Gordon R.A., P.R.S.A.
- Portrait of Charles Lamb (1775-1834)
- oil on canvas, in a painted oval
Provenance
Their estate sale, New York, American Art Association, 10 January 1929, lot 33.
Condition
"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."
Catalogue Note
A celebrated essayist, poet and novelist, Charles Lamb was born in London in 1775, the son of a servant, John Lamb, and his wife Elizabeth. In 1782, under the patronage of his father's employer Samuel Salt, a bencher of the Inner Temple, Lamb was enrolled at Christ's Hospital school, where he was was a fellow pupil with Samuel Taylor Coleridge. It was through Coleridge, whom would remain a source of much of Lamb's inspiration throughout his life, and with whom he collaborated in the publication of a series of poems in 1797, that Lamb met William and Dorothy Wordsworth, who would equally remain lifelong friends. A close associate of William Hazlitt, with whom he shared a critical enthusiasm for painting, Lamb was an integral part of the literary world of Regency England, and a central figure in the Romantic movement.