Portrait of Henry Stanley, Fourth Earl of Derby
Date made: 1593
Artist: unknown artist
Description: An oil portrait of Henry Stanley, Fourth Earl of Derby (1551-1593).
It was painted in the year of his death. He is depicted as standing, wearing a chain showing St. George on horseback, with arms within garter, top left and a lace-edged ruff. He wears an enamel rose ornament hat and carries a white stave in one hand. The painting has an inscription stating, 'Henry Earl of Derby AE62 A.D. 1593'.
The Fourth Earl of Derby was one of the few Stanley Lords of Man who visited the Isle of Man. Henry Stanley travelled over in 1577 and presided over Tynwald, and visited again in 1583. The exact reasons for his visits are not clear, but we know that by 1586 he was very keen to make sure that the Lord of Man’s rights over the Isle of Man were asserted. In that year, the earliest Treasure Trove legislation came into being, which read;
'... any Treasure whatsoever being found and secretly hidden under Ground, either within the House or without in the Fields, or in the Thatch of the House, or within any other covert Place, to the End to defraud the right Heyres, or for any other fraudulent Intent or Purpose, shall be the Lord's, as a Prerogative due unto his Lordship by the Lawes of this Isle.'
This legislation was used to allow artefacts of gold or silver to be claimed by the British Crown up until 2017.
Measurements: overall: 86 cm x 71 cm
Materials: oil on wood
Object name: painting
Collection: Art Collection
ID number: 1979-0164
Subject tags : #artgallerypeople