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Description English School, circa 1580
Portrait of John Foxe (1516-1587)
inscribed upper left and right: Johanus. Fox.
oil on panel
57.7 x 44.7 cm.
Condition Report The panel is uncradled, flat and stable. The varnish is slightly discoloured. There is a vertical join (supported by two battens on the reverse) just right of centre - this is visible to the naked eye and has a handful of associated tiny losses and small retouchings. There is evidence of past flaking with associated retouching, most visible under raking light - this is all stabilised but there is a small section just left of the sitter's face where the paint surface is slightly tenting. There are a few larger retouchings in the sitter's hat. Inspection under ultraviolet light confirms the aforementioned retouchings underneath the fluorescing varnish.
"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."
Literature Inventory, 1749, in 'Sir Windham's [
sic]?Chamber';
Catalogue of Portraits, 1920,?'Small Panels', p. 24.
Notes Born in Boston, Lincolnshire, Foxe's fame rests upon his famous Book of Martyrs. He studied at Brasenose College, Oxford, before becoming a fellow of Magdalen?College, Oxford. He left the city in 1545 and became tutor to the Lucy family at Charlecote in Warwickshire. His more extreme Protestantism became more acceptable under the reign of Edward VI when Foxe entered the household of the King's kinswoman Mary, Duchess of Richmond. Here he tutored Thomas Howard, later 4th Duke of Norfolk. With the advent of Queen Mary he fled abroad first to Strasbourg and then Frankfurt (where he encountered John Knox), and thence to Basel. Here he commenced in 1552 his Book of Martyrs which was published in England a decade later, going through four editions in his lifetime. The book was highly influential, with its vivid and horrid accounts of the sufferings of protestants under the Catholic church, and shaped the English attitude to the Roman faith for generations.
There appear to be no ad vivum portraits of Foxe, although two late 16th?or early 17th century images survive elsewhere, one in the National Portrait Gallery, London (inv. NPG 24)1 and another, closer to this work, in the collection of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge (inv. no. 27).2
1 https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw02314/John-Foxe?LinkID=mp01661&role=sit&rNo=0
2 https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/john-foxe-151615171587-martyrologist-193625