Author: Snare, John
Title: The History and Pedigree of the Portrait of Prince Charles (Afterwards Charles I) Painted by Velasquez in 1623 Auction
Description: Pubd. Author, 1847. Hardcover. 228p. The author offes a very detailed accout of a painting in his possession apparently of Prince Charles( later Charles I) by Velasquez. John Snare born c.1811-1884 was a bookseller and publisher from Reading, England, whose life was dominated by the discovery at a country house auction in 1845 of a hitherto lost Diego Velázquez painting, which Snare identified as a young Charles Stuart. It was supposed that the portrait was painted in 1623 during Charles' eight-month visit to Spain where the future monarch failed in his attempt to secure the hand of the Spanish Habsburg princess Maria Anna. A protracted court case in Scotland with trustees from the estate of the Earl of Fife arose over the ownership of the work and this eventually brought Snare to financial ruin. Following the trial, Snare emigrated to New York City. After Snare's death, the Velázquez passed to Snare's son, and went on display briefly in 1885 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The painting has not been seen again since. No images of the work survive, only Snare's written descriptions of the painting. In 2016, Snare's story was told by Observer art critic Laura Cumming in her book, The vanishing man: In pursuit of Velazquez (Chatto & Windus). (wiki) The book seenms to have been published in a yellow wrapper (Price five shillings) and has a portrait frontis of a Prince Charles I from the Bodlian library. The text block in wrappers has been bound in simple plain paper covered boards. No front pastedown or endpapers ? as bound. Chords just holding. See scans. Size: 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾ tall . Very Good

Keywords: