The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Cleaned Hospitalfield painting could be by Dutch master
A painting in an Angus collection that was obscured by 400 years of dirt and old varnish could prove to be a lost masterpiece.
One of Britain’s top art historians suspects the painting in Hospitalfield’s collection is the work of 16th Century Dutch artist Antonis Mor.
Dr Bendor Grosvenor and Emma Dabiri, who present the BBC TV programme Britain’s Lost Masterpieces, travelled to Arbroath to investigate what could be a true Old Master.
The identity of the subject of the portrait remains as much a mystery as its provenance and how it was acquired by the collection.
Dr Grosvenor said: “Finding such a potentially extraordinary painting in a place as magical as Hospitalfield would be an immense privilege.”
Mor was born in Utrecht in 1517 and studied art under Jan van Scorel who established the painting style of the Italian Renaissance in Holland.
His rise to eminence was rapid and his subjects included Mary Tudor, Queen Mary I of England, whom he painted at the time of her marriage to Philip II of Spain.
Hospitalfield director Lucy Byatt said: “This is so exciting.”
The portrait is now hanging in a central position within the extensive collection of mainly Victorian paintings at Hospitalfield House.
Britain’s Lost Masterpieces will air on Wednesday at 9pm on BBC Four.