NATIONAL GALLERY.—RESOLUTION. (Hansard, 3 August 1869)

§ THE EARL OF WINCHILSEA

said, that he had asked a few days ago a Question concerning certain pictures in the National Gallery, but had received an answer which he thought far from satisfactory. The noble Lord who then answered on the part of the Trustees of the National Gallery (Lord Overstone) did not, as he expected, offer any evidence of the genuineness of the pictures then referred to. He had been very much surprised at the statement made by the noble Lord with respect to the power of the Director in purchasing pictures; but having since looked into the Treasury Minute he was bound to say that the noble Lord was perfectly correct in his statement. At the same time a more extraordinary Minute he never saw in his life. From the Minute it seemed that the Trustees had a mere barren power, and all the real power was placed in the Director. It appeared that in the case of the purchase of pictures the whole power of the Trustees was confined to a barren protest, and that pictures were bought upon the judgment of the Director alone, whose decision, upon all the suggestions made to him, would be final. According to the 1141 Treasury Minute, one of the most important of the duties of the Director was to construct the history of every picture in the collection. In this way the history of one of these pictures had been constructed, no evidence of its genuineness being offered, though opinions were referred to in its favour. Reference was made to Vasari, who was represented to have said that Michael Angelo left many unfinished works in painting. Now, this was a complete misrepresentation of the passage in Vasari, who said that they were finished works. He contended that, for the satisfaction of the Director himself, and certainly for that of the public, it would be better that those who had the power of altering the Treasury Minute should alter it in the terms of the Motion of which he had given notice. What he proposed was— That henceforth it be an instruction to Mr. Boxall, R.A., to buy no picture in England without previously submitting it to the judgment of the Trustees of the National Gallery, or any picture in foreign parts which has not got an authentic pedigree from the date of its being painted by the Master to whom it is ascribed to the day of purchase, unless by special permission in writing from the aforesaid Trustees. Now, he did not think that was at all an unreasonable restriction. The country in no way stinted the National Gallery in the grant of money for the purchase of pictures; and in return he submitted that the country had a right to require genuine works of art, and not works about which there was a great variety of opinion. The variety of opinions respecting the supposed Rembrandt was so great that it should be put, with the spurious "Race Home," in the cellar of the National Gallery. That would be the best place for it, because to see this picture attributed to Rembrandt surrounded by undoubted Rembrandts was too much for a person who had formed a correct notion of art. He hoped he should not be understood as saying anything offensive to Mr. Boxall personally. He had not the honour of that gentleman's acquaintance, and it was only on public grounds that he brought forward this question. He should not trouble their Lordships to divide on his Motion; but having directed attention to the subject, which he thought was really of vital importance, he hoped that something might be done to insure for the future that the public, in return 1142 for their money, should have pictures about the authenticity of which there could be no doubt. Movedto resolve, That henceforth it be an instruction to Mr. Boxall, R.A., to buy no picture in England without previously submitting it to the judgment of the Trustees of the National Gallery, or any picture in foreign parts which has not got an authentic pedigree from the date of its being painted by the master to whom it is ascribed to the day of purchase, unless by special permission in writing from the aforesaid Trustees. —(The Earl of Winchilsea and Nottingham.)

EARL GRANYILLE

said, he did not question that his noble Friend had directed attention to this subject upon public grounds, nor did he venture to impugn the correctness of his taste, knowing the attention he had paid to art subjects. But as to the authenticity of these pictures, he thought he had hardly ever heard a more complete answer than that given the other evening by the noble Lord (Lord Overstone), who, he regretted to say, was not now present, and who was conversant with all the details connected with these pictures. With regard to the mere business question of where the responsibility should rest in these cases, he entirely disagreed from his noble Friend. In his opinion it was of great importance that one paid officer—an officer paid by Parliament — should be made responsible for every purchase. If he did that which the Trustees thought he ought not to do, they could protest against the purchase. But there was no mistake so great as to invest with responsibility a considerable number of persons, sometimes attending, sometimes not attending, and all occupied with other matters. The real mode of insuring effective responsibility was to declare that whatever was done should be done by one paid officer responsible to Parliament and to public opinion. Holding this opinion, he could not encourage his noble Friend in the hope that the Government would be inclined to make the change which he proposed.