Oval, enamel, in a gold frame, 4.5cm. The reverse is engraved with a cypher and the inscription, ‘Was born September ye 4th 1725/ his age 6 years & half’, painted circa 1732.
Brownlow (1725-1793), who inherited as the 9th Earl of Exeter in 1754, was one of Burghley’s two great collectors.
He travelled to Italy on the Grand Tour in 1763 and 1768, where he acquired many important paintings, items of statuary and other works of art.
At home, he commissioned many exceptional pieces of contemporary furniture and employed Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown for more than two decades to remodel the landscape surrounding the House.
Zincke, who was born in Germany, moved to England as a young man to work in the studio of the Swedish enamellist Charles Boit (1662-1727).
When Boit moved to France some years later, Zincke inherited his many fashionable clients and in due course, became the most successful enamellist of his time.
