Portrait miniatures, silhouettes and gallimaufry

Small Portraits of Character

Wigs on the Green specialises in fine portrait miniatures, silhouettes, small portraits, and provincial art, predominantly from the 18th and 19th centuries. Our portraits are selected for their historical interest and character. They are not only by listed artists but also those who painted and drew for their own entertainment and pleasure - true to life portraits, with real character and, often, a pretty face!

Collections of miniature portraits or silhouettes considered for purchase.

New Arrivals

Watercolour portrait of a young Regency lady

'Dead Ringer'

Circa 1810

£750

Coral & Pink

Pierre Pasquier

£980

John Lea, silhouette reverse painted on glass of an officer

A Distinguished Officer

John Lea of Portsmouth

£650

John Lea, silhouette reverse painted on glass of a gentleman

Theophilus Pritzler

John Lea of Portsmouth

£650

Peaches & Cream

Richard Cosway

£3,750 - Reserved

Small oil on metal portrait of a lady wearing a riding habit

The Riding Habit

Circa 1770

£340

Latest Musing

A Special Commission for John Field

21st June 2024

It was not uncommon for well-to-do Georgian gentlemen to allocate a sum of money in their will for the purchase of mourning attire and rings for close friends and family. Typically these rings would be gold and black enamel bands personalised with the deceased’s name in gold lettering. But when the philosopher and social reformer Jeremy Bentham died in 1832 at the age of 84, he not only left precise instructions in his will for… (show more)

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