Lot 61: Portrait of a Gentleman, possibly a member of the Mitford family, half-length, in a black coat, holding a scroll, in a painted oval

Thomas Gibson London 1680-1751
Portrait of a Gentleman, possibly a member of the Mitford family, half-length, in a black coat, holding a scroll, in a painted oval
signed and dated 'T. Gibson. pinx. 1726' (lower right) and inscribed 'Manerius/de.Shepard/Rome/Middford' (on scroll)
oil on canvas
29 7/8 x 25 in. 75.9 x 63.5 cm.

A label on the reverse of the present work identifies the sitter as the historian William Mitford (1744-1827) but on account of the discrepancy in dating this can be discounted. However, it likely depicts another member of the Mitford family of Exbury in Hampshire.