The Ashbourne portrait is one of several portraits that have been falsely identified as portrayals of William Shakespeare. At least 60 such works had been offered for sale to the National Portrait Gallery in the 19th century within the first forty years of its existence; the Ashbourne portrait was one of these. The portrait is now a part of the collection of the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC.
The Ashbourne portrait as it now appears after restoration.
The portrait as it appeared in G.F. Storm's mezzotint.
19th-century print based on the Ashbourne portrait, when the sitter was presumed to be William Shakespeare
Percy Allen argued that this portrait of Edward de Vere matched the physiognomy of the Ashbourne portrait.
Folger Shakespeare Library
The Folger Shakespeare Library is an independent research library on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., United States. It has the world's largest collection of the printed works of William Shakespeare, and is a primary repository for rare materials from the early modern period (1500–1750) in Britain and Europe. The library was established by Henry Clay Folger in association with his wife, Emily Jordan Folger. It opened in 1932, two years after his death.
The Folger Shakespeare Library reading room with one of Shakespeare's First Folios in the foreground
Paul Philippe Cret's original designs for the east facade of the Folger Shakespeare Library, early 1930s
Exterior of Folger Shakespeare Library
An angled view down East Capitol Street with the dome of the US Capitol in the distance
