Madame Isaac de Thellusson, née Sarah le Boullenger (1725). Nicolas de Largillière (French, 1656-1746). Oil on canvas. English Heritage, Brodsworth Hall.

Madame de Thellusson makes a grand gesture amidst a swirl of deliciously coloured drapery. Nicolas de Largillière was adept at producing magnificent portraits for wealthy patrons. Sarah Le Boullenger had married Isaac de Thellusson in 1722. He came from a Huguenot family of financiers and, from 1730, was the Genevan ambassador in Paris. Their sons were also financiers, and the youngest, Peter, settled in England in 1761. He amassed a fortune, and bought land including the Brodsworth estate in Yorkshire.