Provenance

Bequeathed by the artist in 1816 to James White of Exeter (1744–1825), on whose death it passed to Towne’s residuary legatee John Herman Merivale (1779–1844) and his successors. Merivale’s granddaughters Maria Sophia Merivale (1853–1928) and Judith Ann Merivale (1860–1945), both of Oxford, inherited the drawing in May 1915 within a sketchbook containing FT733 to FT751. Probably the book was among the “two small sketchbooks and five small drawings late in date” that Judith Merivale sold to Squire Gallery in 1945 for £50. By early 1946 the drawing was owned by the Fine Art Society, as on 21 or 23 January 1946 it was sold to Agnew’s (no.4404) for £47 5s. On 1 March 1946 it was bought for £15 less commission of £2 17s. by Sir John Heathcoat Amory, Bt (1894–1972), who on 27 February 1956 sold it back to Agnew’s (no.8261), where on 15 January 1957 it was bought by a collector (see also 749), whereafter the drawing is untraced.