An old master oil painting, once the collections of the Southwell family of Kings Weston house, has recently been advertised for auction. We note, with disappointment, that it has recently been released from the large collection of historic Kings Weston paintings held in trust by the descendants of the Southwell’s, later Barons de Clifford.
The painting, Christ in the House of Simon the Pharisee, is first recorded hanging in Lady de Clifford’s dressing room decorated in blue silk damask. This room is now the first floor room with the bay window overlooking the Severn. Here it accompanied some of the best of the family’s collection of paintings, the most intimate, and intended only for view by them or their most special guests. On the surrounding walls were works by Claude Lorrain, Nicolas Poussin, Annibale Carracci, Pietro da Cortona, and four paintings by Canaletto.
An inventory of the contents of the house in 1777 describes the painting as “The washing of our saviour’s feet” and the artist as “Old Frank”. This attribution has now been revised and is now considered to be by his son, Frans Francken the younger (1581-1642). The 18th-century attribution to Francken the Elder likely stems from the signature “D.o. ffranck,” where “D.o.” stands for the Flemish de oude, meaning “the Elder.” However, this signature was actually used by Frans Francken the Younger from the late 1620s. Prior to the death of his father in 1616, he had signed his works as “the young Frans Francken.”
Whilst the auctioneer suggests that it come to Kings Weston courtesy of the second Edward Southwell (1705-1755), it’s more likely to have been during one of Sir Robert Southwell’s journeys across the Low Countries that it was purchased or perhaps his son, Edward’s travels in 1697; it’s not included in an inventory of pictures at Kings Weston from 1695, so perhaps the latter is more probable.
The painting remained at Kings Weston until the last of the direct line of the Southwell Family, The 21st Baron de Clifford, died in 1832. With no direct heir, he willed that the contents of the house be sold in its entirety. The painting, by this time described as Mary Magdalen washing the feet of Christ and attributed to Old Franks, sold for £10 10 shillings, as much as a painting by the more famous Poussin. As was common, it’s likely that a family member bought back a number of paintings, perhaps one of the nieces who were the ultimate beneficiaries of the sale.
We last saw the painting just outside Taunton where the family trust stored much of the collection of paintings. The circumstances and reason for it leaving such an important private collection are unknown, but we’ll endeavour to find out. If anyone were interested in returning it to Kings Weston, it will be sold via Dreweatts auction house on November 4th and the current estimate is £20-30,000!