Portrait of Henry Hallett Dale
Date
1945
Sitter
Henry Hallett Dale (1875 - 1968, British) , Knight Physician, Physiologist
Creator
Herbert James Gunn (1893 - 1964, British) , Painter
Object type
Archive reference number
Material
Dimensions
height (painting): 1122mm
width (painting): 923mm
width (painting): 923mm
Subject
Description
Half-length portrait of Sir Henry Dale as President of the Royal Society, seated in front of a table upon which are papers, a large red-bound volume [probably intended as the Society’s Charter Book] lower right and the Society’s ceremonial George III silver inkwells. Dale wears spectacles and looks directly to the viewer. He is dressed in a grey three-piece suit with diamond patterned tie and white shirt. Immediately behind Dale is a wooden door and architectural pillar, with a framed print partially visible between the two.
Henry Dale was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1914, he served as its President from 1940 to 1945.
Henry Dale was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1914, he served as its President from 1940 to 1945.
Transcription
James Gunn ‘45
Sir Henry Dale Royal Society
Royal Society
SIR HENRY HALLETT DALE, PRESIDENT 1940-45 by JAMES GUNN
Sir Henry Dale Royal Society
Royal Society
SIR HENRY HALLETT DALE, PRESIDENT 1940-45 by JAMES GUNN
Object history
Commissioned by the Royal Society, 1944.
The commissioning process by the Society’s Library Committee began in February 1944: “it be a recommendation to Council that Mr James Gunn be invited to paint a portrait of the President for a fee of £500.” [Minutes of the Library Committee of the Royal Society, CMB/47/5, meeting of 11 February 1944, p.250]. By March, “The chairman reported that Mr James Gunn had agreed...” [Minutes of the Library Committee of the Royal Society, CMB/47/5, meeting of 24 March 1944, p.251].
The commissioning process by the Society’s Library Committee began in February 1944: “it be a recommendation to Council that Mr James Gunn be invited to paint a portrait of the President for a fee of £500.” [Minutes of the Library Committee of the Royal Society, CMB/47/5, meeting of 11 February 1944, p.250]. By March, “The chairman reported that Mr James Gunn had agreed...” [Minutes of the Library Committee of the Royal Society, CMB/47/5, meeting of 24 March 1944, p.251].
Associated place