Ham House lies on the banks of the Thames, close to London. The seventeenth-century house has been exceptionally well preserved and to a large extent still has its original interior, which dates from the time of Elizabeth Murray, Countess of Dysart.
She inherited the estate from her parents in 1655, including the collection that her father had built up there. After the death of her first husband Elizabeth married John Maitland in 1672, elevating her to the status of Duchess of Lauderdale.
The couple had Ham House extensively remodelled and refurnished, with an important role set aside for Dutch painters. Some of the couple’s paintings have remained in their places in the Green Closet or the Duchess’s private apartments ever since.Ham House has been managed by the National Trust since 1948.
From this house you will see the following works in the Mauritshuis:
- Cornelius Johnson - William Hamilton, 2nd Duke of Hamilton and John Maitland, Earl (later Duke) of Lauderdale (1649)
- Frans Post - A Village in Brazil (c.1675)
- Abraham Bloemaert - The Baptism of Christ (c.1598-1600)
- Ambrosius Bosschaert II - Blackbird, Butterfly and Cherries (c.1635)
- Peter Lely - Elizabeth Murray, Countess of Dysart, later Duchess of Lauderdale (1626-1698) (1648)
