May 27, 2020 Founders & Patriots
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 5/27/2020
Unknown artist, Canadian or British School. "Portrait of an Officer of the 4th or "King's Own Regiment" of Foot, circa 1787" Oil on canvas, 27 1/4 x 20 inches, within carved and gilded frame. A highly interesting, full-length portrait of a flank company officer (or possibly the sergeant major) of the 4th Regiment of Foot as they would have appeared while serving in Canada during 1787-1793. He wears a scarlet uniform with blue facings, the silver-laced buttonholes and buttons arranged "by 2s" or pairs and his collar or "cape" or the "stand and fall" form popular from the mid-1780s through early 1790s. He has been painted without gorget or sash, indicating an off-duty or more informal dress and the paired epaulettes indicate that he is a member of a flank company, either grenadiers or light infantry (battalion company officers wearing but one on the right shoulder). His white swordbelt bears a silver, oval belt plate bearing a "crown/4" device upon it and his silver- or steel-hilted sword has a sword knot of silver lace with scarlet lines. Suspended from the 3rd buttonhole on his left lapel is the medal or badge of the "The Loyal and Friendly Society of the Blew and Orange." The Society, anti-Jacobin in nature, was founded between 1733 and 1736 by officers of the King's Own Royal Regiment to commemorate the Revolution of 1688 and the accession of the House of Hanover to the English throne in 1714. The Blew (the archaic spelling of blue) symbolizing the Royal connection and the Orange signifying the link with King William III (William of Orange). The last recorded meeting of the Society was in 1801. In the background is a encampment scene along a body of water, with low mountains beyond, probably a Nova Scotia or Newfoundland view, where the regiment was largely quartered. CONDITION: the work relined and cleaned, probably in the last 10 years, with some inpainting noted on the sleeves of coat and on the waistcoat below. JLK
CORRECTION: Title updated. De Heer was born in Bouxwiller, France and came to Canada in 1776 as an ensign in the Regiment von Specht and by 1787 was living in Quebec where he advertised that “He will draw Pictures either in Oil or in Pastel.” This officer was probably painted shortly after the 4th Foot arrived in Quebec as part of its garrison in 1794 and the background scene is likely the north bank of the St. Lawrence River outside Quebec, according to Rene Chartrand, retired chief curator of Parks Canada, to whom we are grateful for the strong attribution of this work to de Heer, considered “one of the best primitive portrait artists in Lower Canada” during the 18th century.