Captain Patrick Miller

1788/1789, altered later (date unknown)

Sir Henry Raeburn

Associated Names
Sir Henry Raeburn

Artist, Scottish, 1756 - 1823

This painting is a portrait of a man standing upright, his chest facing us and his head turned to the left. A horse is positioned directly behind him, and his left arm is lifted, resting on the horse's back. The man has fair skin and wavy gray hair that curls around his ears and seems to be tied behind his neck. He has a slightly flushed complexion, a long nose, pale eyebrows, and lips that seem to be partially open. He wears a formal military uniform, including a brown coat adorned with silver braiding, a brown vest, a pink sash tied at his waist, tan trousers, and tall black boots. He holds a black hat in his right hand. The horse is brown, with its rear visible on the right and its head on the left. The background shows a wooded landscape with dark brown trees and a cloudy red sky.

Media Options

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On View

West Building Main Floor, Gallery 59

Artwork overview

  • Medium

    oil on canvas

  • Credit Line

    Gift of Pauline Sabin Davis

  • Dimensions

    overall: 167.2 x 132.8 cm (65 13/16 x 52 5/16 in.)
    framed: 195.9 x 160 x 11.4 cm (77 1/8 x 63 x 4 1/2 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1948.19.1

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Wallis & Son, London), 1910; purchased by Sir Edgar Vincent, bt., later 1st viscount d'Abernon [1857-1941], Esher and Stoke d'Abernon, Surrey; sold c. 1917 to (Duveen Brothers, Inc., London, New York, and Paris);[1] purchased 1919 by Mr. [d. 1933] and Mrs. Charles H. Sabin, Southampton, Long Island, New York; Mrs. Sabin [née Pauline Morton], who married Dwight F. Davis, Washington, D.C., in 1936; gift 1948 to NGA.
[1] Duveen Brothers to Mrs. John Shapley, 5 August 1948, in NGA curatorial files.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1910

  • Pictures by Sir Henry Rareburn, R.A., French Gallery (Wallis & Son), London, 1910, no. 18.

1966

  • Loan for display with permanent collection, Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, Florida, 1966-1968.

1969

  • Inaugural Exhibition: American Portraits, The Art Museum, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, 1969-1970, no cat.

1972

  • Styles in Portraiture, Northern Virginia Fine Arts Association, Alexandria, Virginia, 1972, no cat.

1999

  • Masterpieces from the National Gallery of Art, Washington, Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art; Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, 1999, no. 85, repro.

Bibliography

1911

  • Greig, James. Sir Henry Raeburn, R.A.: His Life and Works. London, 1911: 53.

1957

  • Shapley, Fern Rusk. Comparisons in Art: A Companion to the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. London, 1957 (reprinted 1959): pl. 92.

1965

  • Summary Catalogue of European Paintings and Sculpture. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1965: 106.

1968

  • National Gallery of Art. European Paintings and Sculpture, Illustrations. Washington, 1968: 94, repro.

1975

  • European Paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1975: 278, repro.

  • Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. New York, 1975: no. 528, color repro.

1985

  • European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 323, repro.

1992

  • Hayes, John. British Paintings of the Sixteenth through Nineteenth Centuries. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, D.C., 1992: 188-191, color repro. 191.

Wikidata ID

Q20179571

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