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Johannes Locke

After Sir Godfrey Kneller German
Engraver John Smith British
Sitter John Locke British
1721
Not on view
Kneller's portrait of the philosopher John Locke is considered the best likeness of the Englightenment thinker. The artist retained it until 1703, selling it to a London surgeon Alexander Geekie. Sir Robert Walpole hung it in the Common Parlour at Houghton Hall as part of an assemblage of notable, or illustrious, historical figures. In 1779 the painting was part of the group purchased by Catherine the Great and it is now at the Hermitage.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Johannes Locke
  • Artist: After Sir Godfrey Kneller (German, Lübeck 1646–1723 London)
  • Engraver: John Smith (British, Daventry 1652–1743 Northampton)
  • Sitter: John Locke (British, Wrington 1632–1704 Oates, Essex)
  • Date: 1721
  • Medium: Mezzotint; second state
  • Dimensions: sheet: 13 3/4 x 9 13/16 in. (35 x 25 cm)
  • Classification: Prints
  • Credit Line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1925
  • Object Number: 25.62.31r(b)
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

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Aedes Walpolianae, or a Description of the Collection of Pictures at Houghton Hall in Norfolk, the Seat of the Right Honorable Sir Robert Walpole, Earl of Orford (Interleaved with Drawings by Isaac Ware for: The Plans, Elevations, and Sections of Chimney Pieces, and Celings of Houghton Hall in Norfolk...1735) ["The Walpole Album"], Horace Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford British, Etching, engraving, pen and ink, brush and wash, watercolor
Aedes Walpolianae, or a Description of the Collection of Pictures at Houghton Hall in Norfolk, the Seat of the Right Honorable Sir Robert Walpole, Earl of Orford (Interleaved with Drawings by Isaac Ware for: The Plans, Elevations, and Sections of Chimney Pieces, and Celings of Houghton Hall in Norfolk...1735) ["The Walpole Album"]
Horace Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford
Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford
1550–early 20th century
Portrait of George I
Multiple artists/makers
1715
Grinling Gibbons, Sir Godfrey Kneller German, Mezzotint
Grinling Gibbons
Multiple artists/makers
1690
Portrait of a Woman, Called Maria Taylor Byrd, Sir Godfrey Kneller German, Oil on canvas, American
Portrait of a Woman, Called Maria Taylor Byrd
Sir Godfrey Kneller
1700–1725
Charles Beauclerk (1670–1726), Duke of St. Albans, Sir Godfrey Kneller German, Oil on canvas
Charles Beauclerk (1670–1726), Duke of St. Albans
Sir Godfrey Kneller
ca. 1690–95

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