Portrait of Lady Diana Cooke, Circle of Sir Peter Lely.

Oil on canvas in a 19th century frame.

LADY DIANA COOKE was born Diana Butler, daughter of Anthony Butler; she married Sir Henry Cooke, 2nd Baronet, the son of Sir Bryan Cooke and Sarah Ryley.
Sir Henry had succeeded to the title 2nd Baron Cooke of Wheatley Hall in 1683. He had married Diana in 1659, probably the time when this portrait was painted.
They had two children, Sir George, 3rd Baronet, and Henry.
Sir Henry Cooke, 2nd Baronet, died in 1683.

Wheatley Hall, Wheatley, Yorkshire was the magnificent family seat built by Sir Henry Cooke. (see image 5).
The powerful Cooke family lived there until 1914 when the then lord, Sir William, moved out. The Hall became a golf club and flats; in 1933 Doncaster Corporation bought the house and estate and used the land for housing, finally demolishing the Hall in 1938. Today a tractor factory stands on the site of Wheatley Hall.

SIR PETER LELY (1618 - 1680) was the most important portraitist in the reign of Charles ll, although he had painted portraits throughout the Commonwealth. Principal Painter to the King, he painted everyone of importance, maintaining a busy and active Studio to help with the huge demand for his portraits.

SIZE: 45 x 38.5 inches inc. frame.
PROVENANCE:Private Collection, Bristol.
VERSO: Two old inscriptions identifying the sitter (spelling her surname without the 'e') and attributing the painting to Sir Peter Lely. Old Christies stencilled number.