Artwork
Henry Somerset, Earl of Worcester, First Dukeof Beaufort
Henry Somerset, Earl of Worcester, First Dukeof Beaufort is an ink print by the Baroque artist Robert Gaywood. It dates from 1655 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Robert Gaywood’s 1655 print presents Henry Somerset, then Earl of Worcester and later the first Duke of Beaufort, in a formal portrait. Executed as an engraving, the image is rendered in monochrome, featuring a circular composition that isolates the sitter against a plain, subtly shaded background.
Subject & Meaning
The portrait depicts Somerset with curled hair, a neatly trimmed mustache, a ruffled collar, and a dark, buttoned coat, attire that signals his aristocratic status. The inclusion of his title beneath the image underscores the work’s function as a visual affirmation of his rank and lineage.
Technique & Style
Gaywood employed traditional copperplate engraving, incising fine lines into metal to achieve precise detailing of facial features and clothing textures. The method allows for crisp, controlled shading, evident in the subtle gradations that model the sitter’s face and the simple background.
History & Provenance
Created in the mid‑seventeenth century, the print coincides with Somerset’s elevation to the dukedom in 1682, though the engraving predates that honor. Its survival in museum collections reflects the period’s practice of disseminating noble likenesses through printed portraits.
Context
During the Commonwealth and early Restoration era, engraved portraits served both documentary and propagandistic purposes, reinforcing the social hierarchy amid political upheaval. Gaywood’s work aligns with contemporary English portraiture that emphasized clarity of line over painterly effects.
Legacy
While not widely reproduced, the engraving remains a valuable visual record of Henry Somerset’s appearance and attire, contributing to the corpus of mid‑17th‑century English aristocratic portraiture and informing later representations of the Beaufort lineage.
Artist & collection
