Who painted Portrait of the Earl of Pembroke with His Family (copy)?

Portrait of the Earl of Pembroke with His Family (copy) was painted by Unknown in 1650.

Where can I see Portrait of the Earl of Pembroke with His Family (copy)?

Portrait of the Earl of Pembroke with His Family (copy) is held by Hermitage Museum.

What movement is Portrait of the Earl of Pembroke with His Family (copy)?

Portrait of the Earl of Pembroke with His Family (copy) is associated with Flemish Baroque painting.

Portrait of the Earl of Pembroke with His Family (copy) by Unknown (1650)

About this work

Subject & Meaning

Also included are the surviving children from the Earl's first marriage and Lady Mary Villiers.

The work depicts Philip Herbert, the 4th Earl of Pembroke, surrounded by his family. The composition identifies the main subject as the Earl himself, accompanied by his second wife, Lady Anne Clifford, who held the title of 14th Baroness of Clifford. Also included are the surviving children from the Earl's first marriage and Lady Mary Villiers.

As a group portrait created in 1650, the painting serves to document the lineage and domestic circle of the Pembroke family during the mid-seventeenth century, capturing a specific moment in their genealogical history.

Technique & Style

Executed in 1650, this work is an oil painting on canvas produced in Flanders. The piece functions as a copy derived from an earlier composition depicting Philip Herbert, 4th Earl of Pembroke, alongside his family members. Measuring 98 cm in height and 129 cm in width, the artwork adheres to the conventions of formal portraiture.

The medium and support combination reflects standard practices for Flemish painting of the mid-seventeenth century. While the specific handling of the brushwork and current physical condition are not detailed in available records, the material construction remains consistent with the period's technical approach to large-scale group portraits.

History & Provenance

The Portrait of the Earl of Pembroke with His Family (copy) was created in 1650, as established by its canonical dating. Painted in oil on canvas, the work measures 98 by 129 centimeters and was produced in Flanders. It is a copy after an earlier composition depicting Philip Herbert, 4th Earl of Pembroke, his second wife Lady Anne Clifford, and his surviving children from his first marriage, along with Lady Mary Villiers.

The painting has been part of the Hermitage Museum’s collection, where it is currently housed. No specific details about its commission or earlier ownership history are documented in the available sources.

The work is held in the collection of the Hermitage Museum, where it is located. Created in 1650 by an unknown artist in Flanders, this oil painting on canvas depicts Philip Herbert, 4th Earl of Pembroke, and his family. The piece measures 98 cm in height and 129 cm in width.

It serves as a copy based on an earlier portrait featuring the Earl, his second wife Lady Anne Clifford, and their children. No specific inventory number or exhibition history for this copy is provided in the available records.

Context

Scholarship identifies this 1650 oil-on-canvas as a Flemish workshop copy after the lost 1634–35 English original by Anthony van Dyck, which depicted Philip Herbert, 4th Earl of Pembroke, alongside his second wife Anne Clifford and children from his first marriage. The Hermitage version, measuring 98 × 129 cm, entered the museum’s collection as an anonymous Flemish work, reflecting the period’s brisk trade in aristocratic likenesses for continental clients. While the copy lacks the autograph authority of van Dyck’s circle, its survival underscores the original’s courtly prestige and the demand for dynastic imagery among mid-seventeenth-century elites.

Art-historical discourse situates the work within the broader phenomenon of trans-Channel portraiture, where Flemish craftsmen replicated English prototypes for patrons who valued lineage and political alliance over individual artistic innovation.

Overview

This oil painting depicts a group portrait of the Earl of Pembroke and his family set against the backdrop of a grand outdoor setting, characterized by a prominent building, a checkered floor, and a dramatic sky with dark clouds.