Core Record |
| Title |
Bernhard Siegfried Albinus (?) |
| Collection |
Wellcome Library |
| Artist |
Attributed to after Largillière, Nicolas de (French painter and draftsman, 1656-1746) |
| Date Earliest |
about 1730 |
| Date Latest |
about 1750 |
| Description |
This was believed to be a portrait of the anatomist Bernhard Siegfried Albinus. Born in Frankfurt and educated in Paris and Leyden, he was a great anatomist, known in particular for his new injection techniques. He also adopted a method allied with artistry by which he placed two nets divided into squares between the object and the artist in a way similar to the camera obscura in order to achieve the greatest anatomical accuracy. The painting was also believed to be after a work by Nicolas de Largillière, a French artist working in London 1686-7. |
| Current Accession Number |
47326i |
| Former Accession Number |
P 163/1947 |
| Inscription |
front ul 'G E[?]'; front cl 'GALIEN'; front cl 'HIPHO/ CRATE' |
| Subject |
portrait (Albinus, Bernhard Siegfried?); still life; interior |
| Measurements |
81.5 x 64.5 cm cm (estimate) |
| Material |
oil on canvas |
| Acquisition Details |
Bequeathed by Henry Solomon Wellcome 1936. |
| Provenance |
Sale, Foster. London, 28 May 1916 (?); in the collection of Henry Solomon Wellcome, 28 May 1916. |
| Principal Exhibitions |
XVIIth International Congress of Medicine, Wigmore St, London, 1913. |
| Publications |
XVIIth International Congress of Medicine: Handbook of the Historical Medical Museum Organized by Henry S. Wellcome (the Museum of the Section of the History of Medicine), London, 1913, p. ?; Wright, C., British and Irish Paintings in Public Collections, New Haven & London, 2006, p. 500 as 'after?'. |
| Notes |
The initials GE or GD appear on one of the books and these might refer to the name of the artist. There are a number of works in France by Largillière including those at Versailles and the Petit Palais. Examples of Largillière's works at the Witt Library did not look similar to this portrait. The accession record notes that this was purchased at auction but no lot could be found in the catalogue that was of a similar description. |
| Rights Owner |
(c) The Wellcome Trust |
| Author |
Dr Madeleine Korn |
