early life and training charles jervas , an irish portrait painter, translator, and art collector, was born in clonlisk, county offaly, ireland around 1675. he was the son of john jervas and elizabeth, daughter of captain john baldwin of shinrone castle & corolanty, high sheriff of county offaly. jervas studied in london, england as an assistant under
sir godfrey kneller between 1694 and 1695.
rise to prominence after selling a series of small copies of the raphael cartoons circa 1698 to dr. george clarke of all souls college, oxford, jervas travelled to paris and rome (financially supported by clarke and others) remaining there for most of the decade before returning to london in 1709. there, he found success as a portrait painter, capturing the likenesses of the city's intellectuals, including personal friends
jonathan swift and
alexander pope (now in the
national portrait gallery, london ).
notable works and legacy *
portrait of jonathan swift (1710s) - a testament to jervas' skill in capturing the essence of his subjects. *
portrait of alexander pope (1710s) - a notable example of jervas' ability to convey the character of his sitters. *
translation of don quixote (published posthumously in 1742) - jervas' translation, known as "the jarvis translation," was praised for its accuracy but criticized for being stiff and humourless.
key dates: 1675: born in clonlisk, county offaly, ireland 1694-1695: studied under sir godfrey kneller in london 1709: returned to london after time in paris and rome 1723: succeeded sir godfrey kneller as principal portrait painter to king george i 1739: died in london for more on charles jervas' artworks, visit
charles jervas | OriginalUniqueArt.com . explore the
national portrait gallery, london , which features many of jervas' notable works, including his portraits of jonathan swift and alexander pope.
Questions & Answers
How many artworks by Charles Jervas are available to browse?
You can browse 40 artworks by Charles Jervas on the All Artworks page.
How can I follow Charles Jervas's work year by year?
A timeline of Charles Jervas 's works exists: the artist's Artwork Timeline page orders the artworks by creation date.
Where are Charles Jervas's artworks mapped by subject?
Charles Jervas 's works can be explored by subject on the artist's Subject Atlas page.
By the OriginalUniqueArt.com Editorial Team
Updated Sept. 30, 2026
