John Honing. Oil painting, after 1585.

Formerly identified as Edward Honing (1550-1609), the son of William Honing of Carleton in Suffolk and his wife Frances, eldest daughter of Nicholas Cutler of Eye, Suffolk, in accordance with information from Sotheby's catalogue of another version, loc. cit. He married Ursula, daughter and co-heiress of Anthony Wingfield. Latterly (2007), in accordance with information supplied by Mr Theo Barry, the subject is identified as Edward Honing's brother, John Honing (1557/1558-ca. 1585). His family name is also spelt Honings, Honyng, Honnyng, Hunnynge, etc. John Honing is likely to be the Captain Honing who died in the Zutphen expedition, in which English forces aided the Dutch against the Spanish

He has porcupine quills in his cap, possibly an allusion to military service with Sir Philip Sidney: a porcupine appears on Sidney's coat of arms. The quills of the porcupine exemplify fierceness in defence. In the right background, a military skirmish on land next to a body of water: possibly the Flushing expedition of 1585-1586? Upper left, coat of arms

1585

1 painting : oil on wood ; wood 70.3 x 52 cm

1585. Ætatis suæ. 26. Fato ubenter sedens tam mare quam terra The motto which appears on this painting in the form "Fato ubenter sedens tam mare quam terra" is a garbled version of the original motto, "Fato lubenter cedens tam mari quam terra" (Nichols., loc. cit.), i.e. Willingly submitting to fate whether on sea or on land

John Gough Nichols, Collectanea topographica et genealogica, vol. VII, London 1841, pp. 394-400

Christopher Wright et al., British and Irish paintings in public collections, New Haven and London: Yale University Press for the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art, 2006, p. 125 (as no. "44578i")

Wellcome Collection 45678i