As well as Winchester College, William of Wykeham (1324-1404) founded New College, Oxford. He is depicted here with vignettes of these two buildings in the upper left and right (Winchester is on the right).

This painting follows the composition established by Sampson Strong’s portrait of William of Wykeham, commissioned by New College, Oxford in 1596. However, several of its details show that it is dependent on the Winchester variant of that picture (Ao88 – painted in 1597) more than the original in Oxford. The picture, and the frame, appear to date from the early 17^th century. The style is consistent with the work of Richard (sometimes Robert) Greenbury, who produced work for various Oxford Colleges in the 1630s, including historical portraits of Waynflete for New College and Magdalen.

The present work corrects an inaccuracy found in Strong’s original portrait and the contemporary Winchester version, which both show the chapel of New College with only four south-facing windows and the hall with three. In reality, there are five south-facing chapel windows, and three south-facing hall windows, giving a total of eight (as shown here).

A 1734 inventory of College pictures records a portrait of Wykeham hanging in Election Chamber, as well as one in Hall (Ao88) and a ‘head of the Founder’ in the Warden’s Lodgings (Ao33). The picture in Election Chamber is presumably either the present painting or Ao56.

Provenance: Unknown

Location: School