Henry STONE (1616 – 24 Aug 1653, English), known as ‘Old Stone’

George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and His Brother Lord Francis Villiers

oil on canvas

Price: Sold

This portrait, of the Second Duke of Buckingham and his brother, is a seventeenth-century copy of a Van Dyck painting present in the Royal Collection. Painted for Charles I by Van Dyck, the Duke of Buckingham and his brother was hung near that of their sister, Lady Mary Villiers, in the Gallery at St James's Palace.

Horace Walpole said that 'nothing can exceed the nature, luster, and delicacy of this sweet picture', which he regarded as 'one of the finest of this master'. Typically for Van Dyck, the heads are very carefully and sensitively observed and the costumes richly handled.

Charles II is known to have commissioned copies of the composition by his court artist, Henry Stone, known as “Old Stone”, as presents for members of the nobility. Old Stone also made copies of another Van Dyck portrait in the Royal Collection—of Charles II and his siblings—which were commissioned by Charles II for similarly self-aggrandizing purposes. Both compositions were much admired in the eighteenth century and their influence can be seen on the child portraiture of Reynolds, Gainsborough, and Zoffany.