This late 19th-century oil painting by British artist Francis Sydney Muschamp RBA (1851-1929) depicts a mediaeval couple playing chess within a historic interior, perhaps a castle. Muschamp was predominantly known for his imagined domestic scenes with figures dressed in period costume.

Hailing from Hull in Yorkshire, Muschamp moved with his family to London early in life, where he was probably taught to paint by his father, Francis Muschamp Senior. He was an accomplished figure painter and his oeuvre is decorated with beautifully rendered interiors, sweeping dresses, and maidens captivated by chivalrous acts. In some respects, he appears influenced by the Aesthetic Movement but balances this with a traditional Victorian narrative. As such, his works were popular with middle-class buyers, particularly at his peak - they offered a welcome escape from the gritty realities of industrialisation.

Here, in this piece from circa 1895, he’s captured a game of chess between two lovers. It’s probably an allegory of courtship - the merry dance of burgeoning love. The lady wears an exquisite pale green and pink dress, her red hair reminiscent of the Pre-Raphaelite muse, Fanny Cornforth. The shape of her figure cleverly enhanced by the fireplace beyond.

Note the tapestry hanging behind and the mediaeval altarpiece.

Muschamp produced two comparable works around the same time, ‘The Music Lesson’ and ‘A Surprise Visit’. Both feature the same model and similar outfit. The first sold at Sotheby’s, New York, for $12,000.

He exhibited at the Royal Academy and the Royal Society of British Artists, where he was a member.

Signed in the lower right and held within a gilt frame.

Learn more about Francis Sydney Muschamp RBA in our directory.

Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 40½” x 30½” / 103cm x 78cm
Year of creation: c. 1895
Provenance: Private collection, England.
Condition: Assessed and approved by our conservator. Cleaned. Revarnished. Settled craquelure, as you would expect. The paint layer is stable. Frame restored. Frame with light marks and signs of age.
Artist’s auction maximum: £23,000 for ‘On the Beach’, Oil on Canvas, Sotheby’s, London, 1989.
Our reference: BRV1751