Plumbago drawing

There was a group of artists whose work in plumbago is remarkable for their portraits drawn with finely pointed pieces of graphite and on vellum.

One of the earliest of this group of workers was Simon Van de Pass (1595–1647), and his pencil drawings were probably either for reproduction on silver tablets or counters or for engraved plates.

David Loggan (1635–1700), a pupil of Van de Pass, also left a few portraits, as a rule drawn on vellum and executed with dexterity.

There is one representing Charles II, set in a gold snuff box, which was given by the King to the Duchess of Portsmouth, and which went to the Duke of Richmond, and a similar portrait of Oliver Cromwell which was in the possession of Lord Verulam; and there are no engravings corresponding to these.

1637) drew in pencil, adopting brown paper as the material on which his best drawings were done, and in some cases heightening them with touches of white paint.

Later miniature artists, including Nathaniel Hone, Grimaldi, Bernard Lens and John Downman, also drew in plumbago.

Other exponents of this art were Thomas Worlidge (1700–1766), F. Steele (c. 1714), W. Robins (c. 1730), G. A. Wolffgang (1692–1775), George Vertue the engraver (1684–1756), Johann Zoffany (1733–1810), and the Swede, Charles Bancks (c. 1748).