Who is the sitter in this portrait?
RAMM Accession No. 618/1987
Detective work uncovers the story behind the picture
By Curator of West Exe
Who is the man painted here, known locally only as Nathaniel? What is in his hand and why the ship ?
The identity of this wealthy wool merchant was recently uncovered through careful detective work by John Madin, Curator of Art at RAMM. This particular merchant is not directly linked with west Exeter, but his life has many similarities to people who made their fortunes from wool. Much of the cloth was processed west of the Exe, especially in Exwick. Rackfield Cottages is on the site of the fields where cloth was stretched out on racks to dry.
Find out more:
Read research about this portrait done by RAMM: more about Nathaniel
Visit the pages about on the woollen industry on a local independent website: 'Exeter Memories' - the woollen industry