Rosemary Ryan selects a painting of Thomas ‘Bullocks’ Wyse and his sister Catherine in the collection of Bishop’s Palace, Waterford Treasures
In the wake of the Williamite victory and the enactment of the Penal Laws around 1700, the Catholic Francis Wyse of the Manor of St John, Waterford and Mary Masterson, daughter of Thomas Masterson of County Wexford, did what many a wealthy Irish family did – they commissioned portraits of their beloved offspring.
Everything about this large painting of Catherine (dates unknown) and Thomas (1701–1770) speaks of wealth, leisure and confidence. Catherine, in a blue dress over white chemise, is seated amid orange drapery. Her right hand holds a swag of flowers and her left arm encircles a pet lamb. Thomas, standing, is dressed in a gold cloak and red coatee over a lacy white shirt. A scarlet macaw is perched on his left hand. The background has a cut-stone structure, incorporating a fountain and a tree, foliage and more flowers, from which hangs a little blue-and-yellow bird.
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