Gustavus Hamilton (1710–1746), Second Viscount Boyne, in Masquerade Costume

Rosalba Carriera Italian

Not on view

Gustavus Hamilton (1710–1746), who was Irish, succeeded in 1723 as Viscount Boyne. He and Edward Walpole, the second son of the powerful Whig prime minister Sir Robert Walpole, were in Venice from January to March 1730, enjoying the pleasures of the Carnival season, and Boyne was there again the following winter. There are three versions of the present portrait: the second (private collection) shows the sitter in an identical costume; in the third (Barber Institute of Fine Arts, University of Birmingham, England) he wears a brown brocaded coat. The hat, veil, and mask, worn outdoors with a black coat, is known to Venetians as the bautta and offered its wearer the advantage of anonymity.

Gustavus Hamilton (1710–1746), Second Viscount Boyne, in Masquerade Costume, Rosalba Carriera (Italian, Venice 1673–1757 Venice), Pastel on paper, laid down on canvas

Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.