George Vertue (London, 1684 - 1756)
Francis Bacon, Viscount St Alban [Franciscvs Bacon Baro de Vervlam Sti. Albini. Vicm.], 1726
Engraving, 22 x 15.5 cm (8 11/16 x 6 1/8 in.)
This is an engraving of the tomb sculpture of Francis Bacon, an early seventeenth-century English politician and promoter of science and rational thought. The sculpture depicts Bacon seated in a chair, and is placed in a niche in a wall. Bacon’s wavy hair is cut to chin length and his beard and mustache are neatly trimmed. He is dressed in elegant clothing. He wears a broad brimmed hat turned up so that we can see his face, a wide white lace neck ruff and shirt cuffs, and a many-buttoned waistcoat under a floor length flowing fur vest. His vertically striped, ballooning pantaloons end above his knees and his loose stockings, tied with ribbons, end below his knees. He wears soft slippers with huge flower blossom shaped buckles. He sits, so relaxed that he might be sleeping, in a wide, straight backed armchair. We see only the whites of his eyes. His body is tilted to the right and his head is supported by his hand while his elbow rests on the chair arm. His knees are open and his other hand lolls over the arm of the chair. He appears both successful and weary in this memorial sculpture. The engraving is uncolored, therefore, we see in grayscale the wall and niche in which the sculpture of Bacon’s seated figure rests. The wall material is large stone blocks surrounding a central, inset, arched niche with capstone. The niche sits atop a simple rectangular pedestal with a flat top. Below the sculpture, there are two memorial inscriptions in Latin.
Long Gallery
Commentary
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