Dedicated follower of fashion

FOR the aristocratic young man of deep pockets and modish aspirations who found his way to the Roman studio of portraitist Pompeo Batoni in the middle years of the 18th century, no item of clothing was apparently more necessary than a fur-lined velvet cloak. In the case of Batoni’s sitter Edward Dering, it was made of red velvet lined with squirrel; William Fermor’s was also red, lined with lynx, and is similar to those worn by Richard Milles and Charles Compton, 7th Earl of Northumberland, in portraits by Batoni dating from 1758–59. British Grand Tourists purchased loose-fitting, fur-edged and lined garments of this sort in Italy for use throughout their travels on the Continent. As their portraits indicate, the appeal was more than practical—they invested Batoni’s