On back: marker pen: 'H.I.W.446 BOLMB: Circle of Gerrit Von Honthorst Charles I'

Despite the attribution to Honthorst (who did paint a famous portrait of Charles I, National Portrait Gallery, NPG4444), this is a copy after the portrait by Van Dyck 0f 1635-36, at Arundel Castle, in the collection of the Duke of Norfolk (see Van Dyck - A Complete Catalogue of the Paintings, Susan J. Barnes, et al, New Haven and London, 2004, cat. no. IV.49, p. 466.). This was a popular image and was copied many times in paintings and etchings. There is another version at the National Portrait Gallery, London. (NPG843). It is not a particularly fine copy, and has lost the subtlety and sensitivity characteristic of Van Dyck in the process, so it is unlikely that it was a studio copy. As for dating, it can be no earlier than about 1635 and mid 17th century would be a safe estimate.

It is impossible to condense the extraordinary life of William Hesketh Lever, first Viscount Leverhulme, (1851-1925) - giant of the soap industry, founder of the Unilever empire, benefactor of art and industry - into a short biography. Since his life and art collections are extremely well documented, this note will be limited to a review of his sponsorship of Hall I’ th’ Wood.

The Hall I’ th’ Wood was acquired by Lord Leverhulme in 1899 and subsequently restored (it was being used as a cattle shed). It was presented to the people of Bolton in 1902, and opened as a 16th century folk museum and tribute to Samuel Crompton, inventor of the spinning mule, who had lived there from 1758. Lord Leverhulme collected a large number of paintings specifically for the museum, using Gooden & Fox as his agents to ensure discretion, the bulk of the works being purchased at Christie’s between 1913 and 1918. It is sometimes assumed that these were cast-offs from the main collection at Port Sunlight, however, there can be little doubt that they were part of a carefully planned scheme for the museum. Firstly, a close look at sale and museum records shows that the paintings spent little, if any, time in the Lever inventory, and were usually transferred to Hall I’ th’ Wood within weeks of being acquired at Christie’s. Secondly, the nature of the works, being mainly 16th century and civil-war portraits, is sharply at odds with the Port Sunlight collection but perfectly in tune with the theme of Hall I’ th’ Wood, designed to be a didactic institution for connecting the people of Bolton to their history and achievements.

One notable incident in this history was the besieging of Bolton by Royalist forces in 1645 and the subsequent execution of James Stanley, 7th Earl of Derby, by Parliamentarians at Bolton in 1651. So the purpose of acquiring images of Derby and other civil war figures, such as King Charles I, King Charles II, Prince Rupert and Oliver Cromwell, seems obvious. These were intended as instructive images, the fame of the sitter being more valuable than the fame of the artist, and there can be little doubt that they were acquired solely for the museum. In conclusion, the importance Lord Leverhulme placed on Hall I’ th’ Wood should not be judged by the value or quality of the paintings he presented, but rather by their contribution to an enterprise designed to celebrate the history of Bolton, as a gift to the people of Bolton.