This noble lady portrait was executed in the last third of the 19th century and depicts Elisabeth Countess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn. It  was painted by famous portrait by Munich painter FRANZ VON LENBACH (1836 - 1904) or by an painter from his circle. There are few famous versions of this portrait by Lembach: Municipal Gallery in the House of Lembach in Munich; Wallraf-Richartz-Museum & Fondation Corboud, Köln, since 1968  on loan from the Federal Republic of Germany ( 2004 Restitution to the legal successor to Bernhard Altmann) Also few unsigned versions are in private collections, including property of the family of the person portrayed.

Elisabeth Countess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn was the first wife of Otto Emil Karl Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, they married in Vienna in 1875.

Franz Seraph von Lenbach (1836–1904) was one of Munich's “painter princes”. As the son of a bricklayer, he came from a humble background. Since 1847 he had devoted himself to drawing and painting and studied with various painters in 1852/1853, including at the Royal Bavarian Polytechnic School in Augsburg and with Georg Hiltensperger (1806–1890) and Hermann Anschütz (1802–1880) at the Munich Academy . In 1857 Lenbach entered the studio of the history painter Karl Theodor von Piloty (1826–1886). From 1863 to 1880 he worked as an art advisor to Adolf Friedrich Graf von Schack (1815–1894) in Munich, Rome, Florence and Madrid. He used his in-depth knowledge of old masters to specialize as a portrait painter. From 1866 onwards, Lenbach established himself as a portrait painter in Munich, expanding his contacts and thus his social position. In 1882 he was awarded the title “Knight of Lenbach”. He spent the winters in the Palazzo Borghese. From 1887–1890, the architect Gabriel von Seidl (1848–1913) had the Lenbachhaus built - a representative villa based on the model of the Italian Renaissance and Baroque on Munich's Königsplatz.[2] Based on photographs, portraits of his prominent clients from politics and culture were created, including Richard Wagner (1813–1883), Helmut Graf von Moltke (1800–1891), the two German emperors Wilhelm I (1797–1888) and Wilhelm II ( 1859–1941), Emperor Franz Josef I of Austria-Hungary (1830–1916), Prince Regent Luitpold of Bavaria (1821–1912), Otto von Bismarck (1815–1898) and many others. What is characteristic of his portraits is the combination of warmly lit, detailed depicted head areas with very carefully characterized facial features and sketchy details

Literature: Sonja Mehl, Franz von Lenbach 1836-1904 in der Städtischen Galerie im Lenbachhaus München, München 1980,

Inscription: unsigned.

Technique: oil on canvas, antique gold-plated frame of earlier period.

Measurements: unframed w.21 1/4” x h 26 1/4” (54 x 66,5 cm), framed w. 27 3/4” x h. 32 3/4” (70,5 x 83 cm).

Condition: professionally restored, a few small inpaintings on the right side from the face.