Elizabeth Erskine, (née Pierrepont), Countess of Kellie
Paul van Somer
ca. 1619
Elizabeth, Countess of Kellie (d. 1621), was one of the wealthiest women in Jacobean England. The daughter of Sir Henry Pierrepont of Holme Pierrepont in Nottingham, Elizabeth was widowed twice before her marriage to Thomas Erskine (1566–1639) in 1604. It is possible that this portrait was made to celebrate Erskine’s elevation as the Earl of Kellie in 1619, as well as the extraordinary wealth of the sitter. The countess’s necklace drips with rich pearls, and the parakeet that clings to her dress might have come from Africa or Asia. Commissioning a portrait from the prized Flemish painter Paul van Somer was itself a mark of status: he was a favorite of Queen Anne of Denmark and members of her circle and had only arrived in England in 1616.
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven · Image: Yale Center for British Art, Public domain · Text: Yale Center for British Art, CC0