Lot 46: Alfred Corbould (fl.1831-1875)

Returning from Her Majesty's Drawing Room, Hyde Park Corner signed and dated 'A.Corbould/1858' (lower left) oil on canvas 20 x 30 in. (50.8 x 76.2 cm.) PROVENANCE Major The Hon. John Joseph Stourton. NOTES Alfred Coubould was a London sporting painter, exhibiting at the RA 1835-75, and at the British Institution and Suffolk Street. Here he depicts a dress carriage in full regalia, bearing its occupant away from a palace visit. Though popular amongst members of the nobility at the beginning of Queen Victoria's reign, such vehicles were superseded by the plainer brougham and landau by 1858. The element of spectacle which Courbould accentuates in his subject's stance and the bright colour scheme is one his public would have acknowledged. Features to note are the door panel bearing the owner's coat of arms, and the staves carried by the liveried footmen - originally adopted to fend off ambitious highwaymen.