Adam's IRISH OLD MASTERS 5th November 2024

54 41 NATHANIEL HONE (THE ELDER) RA (1718 - 1784) Capt. Lambert Brabazon Signed and dated 1784 middle left Oil on canvas, 75.5 x 62.5cm With labels verso €8,000 - 12,000 Captain Lambert Brabazon (circa 1740–1811), of Irish origin, became Lieutenant in 1758 and Captain in 1782, just two years before this signed and dated portrait by Nathaniel Hone was executed in 1784. These biographical facts help to contextualise the manner in which Brabazon is here depicted: he dons his new captain’s uniform proudly, in front of a cloud-filled, menacing sky, which alludes to both his naval accom - plishments and perhaps also to his victories to come. In 1783, Brabazon was flag-captain to Sir Francis Drake (1729–1789) in the Leeward Islands and at the out - break of the French Revolutionary Wars in 1793, he took charge of the impressment service in Dublin. Following the death of Sir Alexander Schomberg (1720–1804), he took over the command of the Dorset, the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland’s yacht, until his own death in 1811. According to an old inscription on the re - verse of this canvas, Brabazon counted Horatio Nelson (1758–1805), 1st Viscount Nelson, among his friends. Another portrait of Brabazon by Robert Hunter (circa 1715/20–1803) can be found in the National Mari - time Museum, London.1 The captain appears younger there, as suggested by his darker-toned brown hair, which has become grey in our picture. The National Maritime Museum painting has been dated circa 1782, but on these grounds, was perhaps executed a few years earlier. Lambert Brabazon as a Mid-Shipman Oil on canvas, 76 x 63cm, (30 x 24.75’’) These rooms 2003