We are delighted to introduce the February edition of our Old Master, British, and European Pictures sale here at Roseberys. The auction features a curated selection of 349 hand-picked lots, ranging from monumental oils to tiny miniatures, spanning the 16th through to the early 20th century.

One lot which we believe will be one to watch is a large canvas by the Victorian artist Edwin Longsden Long, who was best known for his Mediterranean and North African scenes, often executed with a nod to ancient history. The picture, lot 176 in the auction, shows Spanish pottery painters at work - a subject typical of the artist’s oeuvre. The lot is estimated at £12,000-18,000.

Lot 176: Edwin Longsden Long, RA, Spanish Pottery Painters

Another star lot which we look forward to bringing to the market is a large and impressive mythological painting by an artist in the circle of Cornelis Cornelisz. Van Haarlem, estimated at £8,000-12,000. The picture represents Vertumnus and Pomona, a subject derived from Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Ovid’s stories were popular subjects for painters working in Haarlem during the early 17th century.

Lot 6: Circle of Cornelis van Haarlem, Vertumnus and Pomona

We are also pleased to present a particularly strong selection of sporting and equestrian art in this edition of the sale, including works by renowned artists John Frederick Herring Snr., his son John Frederick Herring Jnr., as well as a rare pair of horse portraits by the accomplished equestrian painter John Boultbee.

Lot 219:John Frederick Herring, Jnr., The Find; and Full Cry

There is nothing ‘mini’ about this auction’s offering of portrait miniatures, as we will be offering over a dozen examples from different British collections. A particularly fine example is the portrait of Dorothy Wheler by the 17th-century miniaturist John Hoskins, which is dated 1648 and was likely painted on the occasion of the sitter’s marriage.

Lot 77: John Hoskins, Portrait of Dorothy Wheler

Portraiture generally is a well-represented category in this month’s sale, and we will be showing several fine Victorian examples including works by society artist Edward Hughes, the Scottish painter Robert Walker Macbeth and Newlyn School heavyweight Stanhope Forbes. We are also pleased to present two intimate family portraits by the British-Hungarian society portrait artist Philip Alexius de Laszlo.

Lot 318: Philip Alexius de László, PRBA,

Portrait of John Adolphus de László, the artist's son, in Scouts' uniform

The works on paper category also features a number of interesting and rare pieces, such as an engraving by Albrecht Durer, dated 1520, as well as a large and striking watercolor depicting a naval action during the American Civil War.

Lot 13: Albrecht Dürer, The Virgin with the Swaddled Child (1520)

Lot 125: American School, A naval action during the American Civil War