Story of enslaved boy featured in 1748 Joshua Reynolds portrait emerges in new study | Slavery

For hundreds of years it was known simply as “Jersey”; He was an enslaved boy, approximately 11 years old, depicted in oil on canvas by the great 18th-century portrait painter Sir Joshua Reynolds.

But now, in what is believed to be Reynolds’ first portrayal of a black person, the teenager’s life has begun to emerge, thanks to a research project.

Details found in Admiralty records and other archives have unearthed information about Jersey’s identity, his military service, and even hinted that he may have finally found freedom.

The painting is thought to have been completed around 1748. It shows the boy and his “master”, naval officer and MP Paul Henry Ourry. While Ourry stares authoritatively into the distance, the enslaved boy looks shyly at the officer.

hung in the hall Saltram, a National Trust Georgian manor house in Plympton, Devontitle: Lieutenant, later Captain, Paul Henry Ourry, Member of Parliament (1719-1783) and with an enslaved boy known as “Jersey” (dates unknown).

Although the painting is considered one of Reynolds’ early masterpieces and much information is available about Ourry, almost nothing was known about the boy.

As part of an effort to highlight people whose voices and stories have been ignored or lost, a research project has been launched by the National Trust, the National Gallery in London and the Royal Museums Greenwich to learn more about Jersey.

Mark Brayshay, a volunteer researcher at Saltram, said: “One of the main motivations for our research was to investigate whether more could be discovered about Jersey than his so-called name. Could we recognize and honor him as a distinct individual?”

Brayshay and Katherine Gazzard, curator of the Royal Museums Greenwich, examined admiralty records, letters, muster books (ship records) and captain’s logs and found that the ships to which Ourry was attached were called “Boston Jersey”.

They believe Ourry may have been given the surname Jersey because he was born in the Channel Islands. It is possible that he took his first name because he once lived in Boston, Massachusetts.

Researchers discovered that Jersey was baptized as George Walker (a name he probably knew early in his life) on July 30, 1752, probably in a chapel in Westminster.

The baptismal document describes: “A Fifteen-Year-Old Black Boy Named George Walker of Boston Jersey.” This means it was about 11 years old when painted by Reynolds.

Another important discovery was a meeting in 1751 that identified him as a member of the crew rather than Ourry’s servant.

Brayshay said: “His name subsequently appeared as one of 10 crew members due to be discharged ‘per paybook’. This may mean that Jersey was on Royal Navy pay, but it is also possible that the sums owed actually went to Ourry.”

He was discharged from another ship in the summer of 1753 and disappeared from the records, unseen aboard the other ships on which Ourry served. One theory is that he was sold to someone else, the other is that he was given his freedom and joined another ship.

Historian, broadcaster and National Trust ambassador David Olusoga said the research helped bring Boston Jersey out of the shadows.

He said: “This project asks us to take a closer look at a familiar past, revealing a life long hidden and reminding us that history is shaped by what is made invisible as much as what is remembered.

“To tell Jersey’s story is to confront the silences in our history and to recognize the individuals whose lives are often hidden from view.”

New technical examination of the portrait, along with archival research, has revealed details of Reynolds’ work. He appears to have originally planned an elaborate natural setting by drawing with leafy branches, but this was abandoned for a stark brown background.

Layers of old varnish and non-original paint were removed and “reversible inpainting” techniques were used to fill in missing or damaged areas of the painting, preserving the original material and intent.

Zoe Shearman, Saltram’s estate curator, said the work means lost details can be seen again: “In particular, Jersey’s delicately painted facial features and the beautiful details in her clothing come into sharper focus.”

Shearman said the goal of the project was to try to understand the painting through a more contemporary lens.

“We were able to see Jersey more clearly through what we know about his life and his naval career, but also how he was portrayed on canvas. We may discover more over time, but Boston Jersey was eventually recognized as a person and portrayed as more than an allegory.”

The painting will be exhibited in Saltram’s hall from 9 May. It hangs next to a portrait of his friend Reynolds. The Honorable Captain George Edgcumbe, 1720-95, until 1 NovemberIt brings together two works of art for the first time in two centuries.

Both were commissioned by the Plympton Company. In the Edgcumbe portrait, HMS Salisbury, where Ourry and Jersey served, is anchored in the distance.