Diana Kirke, later Countess of Oxford
Sir Peter Lely
ca. 1665
The inscription at the bottom right of this painting identifies the sitter as Diana Kirke, the daughter of a Scottish courtier. Her family came to England when James VI of Scotland acceded to the throne in 1603, and thereafter they improved their social standing through advantageous marriages to members of the English ruling class. This striking portrait presents Kirke as self-possessed and in command of her sexuality, and points to the promise of her marriage to Aubrey de Vere, a member of one of the oldest aristocratic families in the country. The rose she holds alludes to Venus, the goddess of love, asserting Kirke’s confidence and prowess in matters of the heart and the boudoir.
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven · Image: Yale Center for British Art, Public domain · Text: Yale Center for British Art, CC0