Joshua Dighton: “Fathers of the Turf”

Joshua Dighton (British, 1831-1908)

“Fathers of the Turf”, George Payne (1803-78) & Admiral Lord Rous (1795-1877),

pencil and watercolour on paper, in a duck-egg blue card mount and ‘ebonised’ frame,

“Painted by Joshua Dighton...Merton Bridge...Merton...Surrey” in handwritten pencil to the reverse, 

 22cm x 14cm , 40cm x 32cm (including frame).

Stock Reference Number: LH 1382

George Payne (on the left) is wearing his famous black and white (“magpie”) checkered racing colours. G. Thompson’s oil portrait of the pair, in a very similar pose, can be seen in the Billiard Room at Bodelwyddan Castle, Wales, and is now in the collection of the National Portrait Gallery.