Lot 11TP
Circle of Anthony Lee(active Ireland, 1724-1767)Portrait of Edward Stratford, later 2nd Earl of Aldborough, holding a cricket bat with one of his brothers, probably John, later 3rd Earl of Aldborough holding a bird's nest
2 July 2025, 14:00 BST
London, New Bond StreetSold for £8,960 inc. premium
Looking for a similar item?
Our Old Master Paintings specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistAsk about this lot
Circle of Anthony Lee (active Ireland, 1724-1767)
Portrait of Edward Stratford, later 2nd Earl of Aldborough, holding a cricket bat with one of his brothers, probably John, later 3rd Earl of Aldborough holding a bird's nest
oil on canvas
101.9 x 126.8cm (40 1/8 x 49 15/16in).
oil on canvas
101.9 x 126.8cm (40 1/8 x 49 15/16in).
Footnotes
Provenance
Collection of Rosalind Wingfield Stratford (d. 1953), UK and thence by descent through the family to the present owner
Literature
Dr. A. O'Boyle, The Stratfords of Belan Park Patronage and Collecting 1697-1801, PhD thesis, Dublin, 2005, cat. no. 12
R. Lightbrown, An Architect Earl, Edward Augustus Stratford (1736-1801, 2nd Earl of Aldborough, Dublin, 2008, pp. 39-40, fig. 13
Edward (1736-1801), the eldest son of John Stratford, 1st Earl of Aldborough, of Belan House, County Kildare and his wife Martha O'Neale, sat in the Irish House of Commons between 1759-1777 and the British House of Commons from 1774-5. He succeeded his father as Earl in 1777 and built Stratford Palace in London and Aldborough House in Dublin. He is depicted here with his brother John (d.1823), who inherited his Earldom in 1801.
The boys are both smartly dressed in fashion from the late 1740s/ early 1750s and Edward holds a cricket bat, making this a very early representation of cricket. By the mid-18th century cricket was gaining in popularity and establishing itself as a leading sport in England. Matches were often played for high stakes resulting in the first set of regulations in 1744. Around this time, circa 1750s, the straight cricket bat replaced the slightly curved bat of the past, allowing for improved control and more precise shot placement, mostly due to the introduction of overarm bowling. Francis Cotes's Portrait of Lewis Cage, signed and dated 1768, now in the MCC Museum, Lord's, London, depicts the boy with a slightly curved bat and these can be seen in depictions of the game well into the 19th century.
