The lady with the squirrel (Anne Lovell?), datable to 1526-1528, will be flanked in Room 16 dedicated to portraits from two paintings from the National Galleries: the Portrait of Henry VIII and the least known and never exhibited Portrait of Sir Thomas More, copy of the famous original now kept in the Frick Collection in New York and also datable to 1527.
The lady with the squirrel (Anne Lovell?), 1526-1528
oil on panel, 56 x 38,8 cm
National Gallery, London. Acquired in 1992, with contributions from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, the Art Fund and Mr J. Paul Getty Junior (through American Friends of the National Gallery, London)
The comparison, in addition to a philological interest in studying the workmanship and autography of the paintings, intends to highlight the functional and ideological aspects linked to the theme of the portrait.
In the portrait, a detached-looking woman wears a thick white fur cap holding a red squirrel in her hands, while on her shoulder is a feathered starling; pets common in the fifteenth century, but also with a strong symbolic meaning, used as clues to the identity of the subject. It is thought to be Anne Lovell, whose husband, Sir Francis Lovell, was employed at the court of Henry VIII, King of England. Nut-gnawing squirrels feature in the Lovell family heraldry: the windows of East Harling church include two of the family crests, each featuring six red squirrels. The commission may have been a commemoration of the birth of a son by the couple in the spring of 1526, but it also exhibited their new status as wealthy landowners.
From the 12 April to the 31 July 2022 - National Galleries of Ancient Art - Palazzo Barberini (ROME)
