Beschreibung:

DescriptionA Way of Life: The Collection of Barbara & Ernest KafkaSamuel ShelleyWhitechapel circa 1750 - 1808 LondonPortrait of three ladies
Brown wash over pencil;inscribed lower left: Shelley; sold together with a wash drawing attributed to Samuel Shelley depicting a lady, traditionally identified as Lavinia, Viscountess Althorp (1762-1831), inscribed verso: The Countess Spencer / 1788180 by 226 mm; 218 by 173 mm(2)Condition reportPortrait of three ladies: In good condition. The sheet is not laid down. Portrait of lady, traditionally identified as Lavinia, Viscountess Althorp (1762-1831) Some minor foxmarks, otherwise good. The sheet is not laid down.
Please note that Condition 12 of the Conditions of Business for Buyers (Online Only) is not applicable to this lot.
The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The condition report is provided to assist you with assessing the condition of the lot and is for guidance only. Any reference to condition in the condition report for the lot does not amount to a full description of condition. The images of the lot form part of the condition report for the lot. Certain images of the lot provided online may not accurately reflect the actual condition of the lot. In particular, the online images may represent colors and shades which are different to the lot's actual color and shades. The condition report for the lot may make reference to particular imperfections of the lot but you should note that the lot may have other faults not expressly referred to in the condition report for the lot or shown in the online images of the lot. The condition report may not refer to all faults, restoration, alteration or adaptation. The condition report is a statement of opinion only. For that reason, the condition report is not an alternative to taking your own professional advice regarding the condition of the lot. NOTWITHSTANDING THIS ONLINE CONDITION REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE/BUSINESS APPLICABLE TO THE RESPECTIVE SALE.ProvenanceThe first: Iolo Williams,
sale, London, Sotheby's, 24 September 1987, unknown lot number,
where acquired by the late owners
The second:
Sir John and Lady Witt (1907-1982) (L.2228b);
their executor's sale, London, Sotheby's, 19 February 1987, lot 37,
where acquired by the late ownersLiteratureThe first:
I. Williams, Early English Watercolours, London 1952, pp. 213-4, reproduced fig. 332Catalogue noteIolo Williams, a great authority on early British works on paper, once owned Shelley's Portrait of the three ladies. He illustrated it in his 1952 book and commented that it had 'long given [him] much pleasure and seems to have something of the strong blocking in of the main lines of composition which one associates with the pen and wash drawings of Romney'.1
Shelley was primarily a London based portrait miniaturist but drawings by him survive in, amongst other institutions, the British Museum and Victoria & Albert Museum.
1. Williams, op. cit., pp. 213-4