E. Burton Christ Presented to the People after Antonio Allegri Correggio

Sir Frederic William Burton RHA Family Collection

This picture is one of an interesting collection of works related to the Burton family of Clifden House, near Corofin, Co Clare, Ireland. Most notably, there is a watercolour in the collection attributed to Sir Frederic William Burton RHA (1816–1900), the eminent Pre-Raphaelite painter. Frederic William Burton is also known for his unparalleled work as Director of the National Gallery in London, a post he held for twenty years, from 1874 to 1894, during which time he amassed one of the greatest collections of art in the world. In 2012 Burton’s watercolour 'Hellelil and Hildebrand, The Meeting on the Turret Stairs' was voted Ireland’s favourite painting.

The collection includes works by other members of the Burton family: Mary, Charles Frederick, Jane Anne, John, and 'E.W. Burton Snr Esq of Clifden', who was F.W. Burton’s eldest brother, Edward William Burton of Clifden House. There are also contributions by members of the FitzGerald family, related to the Burton family by marriage. Mary Burton married Maurice FitzGerald, a surgeon, with whom she had two sons, Edward William FitzGerald and Francis Alexander FitzGerald (who married Janet Burton). The Fitzgerald family and their descendants occupied a house on the Burton estate named Adelphi.

Frederic William Burton admired the work of the artists of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood which was founded in 1848, and their work influenced his taste and art. In London Burton developed friendships with members of the group, including Edward Burne-Jones, who shared his scholarly approach to art history and painting. The present collection shows the influence of Pre-Raphaelite themes, such as literary and Shakespearean subjects, medieval legends and red-haired beauties. There are also a number of Irish subjects, including a drawing illustrating the infamous 'Ladies of Llangollen', Eleanor Butler and Sarah Ponsonby, who were two upper-class Irish women whose relationship scandalised and fascinated their contemporaries during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.