An unknown man wearing the Order of Santiago (oil on canvas)

Previously thought to be a self-portrait, the picture shows a full-length portrait of a man, dressed in black, standing on a tiled floor and wearing order of St Iago with a cane in his right hand and a hat in his left. Recent cleaning has revealed a painting of high quality which may well be an original by Cano painted not later than 1638-40, and displaying the influence of Veläzquez of the 1620s and '30s. It was one of the collection of Spanish pictures given to King Louis- Philippe of France by Frank Hall Standish, which was sold at Christie's in 1853 after the death of the exiled king. It was bought by the 1st Lord Penrhyn as a self-portrait by Cano. When Louis-Philippe's widowed queen and children subsequently visited Penrhyn, Lord Penrhyn tried unsuccessfully to hurry them past this picture, thinking the recollections it would revive would not be pleasant.